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City of Half Moon Bay Celebrates Launch of Crisis Assistance Response and Evaluation Services (CARES) Pilot Program

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PRESS RELEASE. From the City of Half Moon Bay on March 16th, 2022.

Today, the City, along with El Centro de Libertad and over 100 community members, public safety officials, and elected officials launched the kickoff of the Crisis Assistance Response & Evaluation Services (CARES) Pilot Program.

This groundbreaking program now offers an alternative response to mental health-related 911 calls traditionally answered by law enforcement, fire, or ambulance. 911 dispatch operators will now have the option to deploy the CARES mobile crisis unit made up of a certified emergency medication technician and behavioral health clinician trained in de-escalation and suicide prevention.

Dignitaries including Half Moon Bay Mayor Debbie Ruddock, San Mateo County District 3 Supervisor and current Board President Don Horsley, and representatives from Senator Becker and Assembly member Berman’s offices provided encouraging remarks. El Centro Executive Director Jeff Essex shared plans for the program and how they will coordinate with first responders and service providers to connect individuals in crisis with the support they need. Members of the family of Yanira Serrano-Garcia were guests of honor, and her brother, Tony Serrano, expressed his appreciation for the program. “We are all here because of Yanira,” Serrano said. The launch of the CARES program marks the upcoming eighth anniversary of Yanira’s death following a call of mental health distress from her family to 911.

The CARES program marks the start of a new era in Half Moon Bay – an era in which people can reach out, without fear, during a mental health or emotional distress crisis, with the assurance that the response will be one of compassion, non-violence, and assistance.

All calls diverted to the CARES program by public safety communications need to go through 911. The CARES team will be providing services within the city limits of Half Moon Bay and the Moonridge Housing Community Tuesdays – Saturdays from 1:30 pm to 10:00 pm. We hope to expand the program later this summer with additional grant funding.

For more information please visit www.hmbcity.com/cares.

CARES – CRISIS ASSISTANCE RESPONSE AND EVALUATION SERVICES PROGRAM

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The City of Half Moon Bay is excited to announce the launch of the Crisis Assistance Response and Evaluation Services (CARES) pilot program. The City has contracted with a local nonprofit service provider, El Centro de Libertad, to pilot an alternative response to mental health-related 911 calls traditionally answered by fire, ambulance, or law enforcement. Service calls appropriate for the CARES team include welfare checks, suicidal ideation and other mental health distress, substance abuse, and low-level, nonviolent concerns related to behavioral health. The CARES team will operate within the city limits of Half Moon Bay in addition to the Moonridge Farmworker Housing Community and be staffed by a 2-person mobile unit made up of a specially trained behavioral health professional and emergency medical technician.

The CARES program will begin responding in March and the pilot will run through fall of 2022. the initial pilot will be staffed 5 days per week, 8 hours per day. Outside of those hours, 911 will dispatch a more traditional response, as appropriate.

Program updates will be presented to the Public Safety Subcommittee and the City Council throughout the duration of the pilot. The CARES program is sponsored by the City of Half Moon Bay and County of San Mateo. For more information, an in-depth staff report is available online and questions can be directed to Matthew Chidester, Deputy City Manager, at (650) 726-8272 or [email protected].

Relevant Documents:

Press Release: Half Moon Bay Partners with El Centro de Libertad and San Mateo County on Crisis Assistance Response and Evaluation Services (CARES) Pilot Program

January 19, 2022 Staff Report

Community Partners:

El Centro De Libertad – The Freedom Center – Program Operator

Similar Programs:

CAHOOTS – Crisis Assistance Helping Out on the Streets – Eugene, OR

PERT – Psychiatric Emergency Response Team –  San Mateo County, CA

SMART – San Mateo Assessment and Referral Team – San Mateo County, CA

Community Wellness and Crisis Response Pilot Project – San Mateo County, CA

SCRT – Street Crisis Response Team – San Francisco, CA

inResponse – Mental Health Support Team – Santa Rosa, CA

 

City Council of Half Moon Bay Meets ~ 1st and 3rd Tuesdays at 7:00pm

HMB City Council Agendas and Zoom Links

 

HMB City Calendar

The New Now ~ Virtual Remote Public Agency Meetings

Watch streaming, or the Pacifica Coast TV video, that we will post. Stay tuned!
The meeting will be held at the Adcock Community Center for any members of the public who wish to speak in person, though we do encourage all members to participate remotely.
The meeting will be:

Members or the public are welcome to submit comments (in accordance with the three-minute per speaker limit) via email

to [email protected] prior to or during the meeting, via Facebook live during the meeting, and via two phone lines during the meeting – (650) 477-4963 (English) and (650) 445-3090 (Spanish).
The City Clerk will read all comments into the record.

 

 

Contact Us

    1. Contact Us

      1. Debbie Ruddock

        Mayor
        [email protected]
        Phone: 650-726-8250 (leave message with Clerk’s office)

      2. Deborah Penrose

        Vice Mayor
        [email protected]
        Phone: 650-726-8250 (leave message with Clerk’s office)

      3. Robert Brownstone

        Councilmember
        [email protected]
        Phone: 650-726-8250 (leave message with Clerk’s office)

      4. Joaquin Jimenez

        Councilmember
        [email protected]
        Phone: 650-726-8250 (leave message with Clerk’s office)

      5. Harvey Rarback

        Councilmember
        [email protected]
        Phone: 650-726-8250 (leave message with Clerk’s office)

The City Council of Half Moon Bay

The City Council of Half Moon Bay is the City’s governing body, and consists of five elected members. The Council sets priorities and policies, makes final decisions on all major City matters, adopts ordinances and resolutions, appoints the City Manager and City Attorney, and approves the annual budget.

City Council members are elected at-large to four-year, overlapping terms. There are no term limits in Half Moon Bay. The City Council selects one of its members to serve as Mayor and one to serve as Vice Mayor, on an annual basis.

The Half Moon Bay City Council typically meets on the first and third Tuesday of each month starting at 7 pm at the Ted Adcock Community Center, 535 Kelly Avenue.

Meetings and Agendas

The City Council typically meets on the first and third Tuesdays of each month, at 7 pm, at Ted Adcock Community Center, 535 Kelly Avenue. City Council meeting schedule, agendas, minutes, and videos are available online. Planning on attending a City Council Meeting? Please visit our “Commenting at a City Council Meeting” information page. You can also learn about City Council Procedures and Decorum.

Strategic Elements

The City Council develops Strategic Elements to help focus the City’s actions and work plans on its key priorities. The Strategic Elements are aimed at providing high quality public services and facilities in a fiscally sustainable, responsive, and friendly manner, which fosters a safe, healthy, and thriving community.

 

Half Moon Bay City Council Subcommittees

  • CSFA Grant Selection
  • Education
  • Emergency Preparedness
  • Finance
  • Human Resources
  • Legislative Affairs
  • Mobility

Half Moon Bay City Council Strategic Plan

The City Council develops Strategic Elements, Priorities, and a Capital Improvement Program to help guide the City’s actions and work plans, and focus efforts on addressing the City’s identified priority initiatives. Together, these comprise the City’s Strategic Plan.

Below is a summary noting each of the Strategic Elements and Priorities.

Click herefor more detailed information and explanations of the Strategic Elements and Strategic Priorities.

 

City Council Strategic Elements

Fiscal Sustainability
 Healthy Communities 
and Public Safety		 Inclusive Governance Infrastructure and Environment

The overarching Strategic Elements describe how the City will conduct its operations in service to the community, and are based on the principles and values that outline the City’s purposes. They offer focus toward the City Council’s key priorities, and are aimed at providing high quality public services and facilities in a fiscally sustainable, responsive, and friendly manner, fostering a safe, healthy, and thriving community.

 

City Council Priorities – FY 2019-20

Affordable Housing Emergency Preparedness Traffic and TDM Sustainability Minimum Wage

Priorities are more specific areas which the City Council deems as critical to address during a given fiscal year (or over multiple fiscal years). Each Priority has a specific set of actions to be taken, which in turn contribute to and outline the staff’s objectives and work plans.

 

City Council Priorities – FY 2018-19

Housing Homelessness Cannabis Short Term Rentals Parks Master Plan

Click here for more details on the FY 2018-19 Council Priorities.

 

Capital Improvement Program

The City’s Capital Improvement Program (CIP) addresses the community’s needs for planned infrastructure improvements over a rolling five-year period. The CIP is intended to respond to the identified needs of the community, to ensure major infrastructure – such as streets, parks, trails, public facilities, sewers, and drainage – are well-maintained for maximum safety, public use, and enjoyment. Click here to download the Capital Improvement Program for Fiscal Years 2019-20 to 2023-24.

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