ENLIGHTENMENT: Meet the Man in Charge of Reducing Homelessness

Hi, it’s Vanessa, your ENLIGHTENMENT host.

We all know homelessness is a hand-wringer of an issue here. Brian Pedro is trying to turn a crisis of despair into beds, services, and measurable progress in the City of Sacramento.

As Director of the Department of Community Response, Pedro is leading city efforts to expand homelessness shelter capacity through tiny homes, safe camping sites and "micro-communities.” He’s thinking of outside-the-box ways to transition individuals from short-term shelters onto paths leading to permanent housing. With the City’s current budget crisis and a gloomy economic outlook, how is he planning to keep the momentum?

Join me for a conversation with Pedro so we can ask him about the recent moves he’s made, including:

• Doing away with large emergency shelters for smaller, more structured environments
• Safe camping sites that will be government-run with security
• Micro-communities specifically for seniors
• Adding hundreds of new tiny homes to expand the Roseville Road Campus
• A proposal for residents in micro-communities to pay 30% of their income to help cover operational costs

Bring your questions for Pedro (nothing is too dumb or too small to ask) as we have a civil conversation about turning the homeless crisis into one the City can actively manage with positive results.

Tickets are $10 general admission, $5 for students. I’ll bring some drinks and snacks, and please feel free to BYO.

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