The development of the Strategic Investment Plan was directly informed and guided by robust community engagement activities, which have been intentionally designed to solicit feedback from a diverse group of stakeholders including: the Continuum of Care (CoC) and its Lived Experience Advisory Committee and Youth Action Board, MOHS staff, non-profit service providers, and government agency partners.

A Core Leadership Team of 14 people was formed to guide the implementation of this strategic investment planning process. The Core Leadership Team is comprised of City staff, CoC leaders, people with lived expertise of homelessness, and representatives from other organizations actively engaged in responding to homelessness in Baltimore. The Team is co-chaired by Irene Agustin from MOHS and Alice Kennedy from from the Baltimore City Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD).

In September 2021, nine (9) Listening Sessions were held, and prioritization surveys were implemented, and a Strategic Investment Planning Progress Report was developed to document these processes and to describe the recommended priorities and funding proposals that resulted.

FULL STRATEGIC INVESTMENT PLANNING PROGRESS REPORT – November 2021

MOHS’ planning consultants developed summary lists of the investment ideas generated through these Listening Sessions, aligned with the following Action Areas:

• Protecting Health and Safety of People Experiencing Homelessness During the Continued COVID-19 Pandemic
• Improving Supply and Access to Housing People Can Afford to Exit Homelessness
• Reducing Unsheltered Homelessness
• Strengthening Crisis Response and Sheltering Activities and Capacity

As illustrated in the charts below, in response to the question “Which type of outcome should receive the largest investment of one-time funding to achieve the greatest long-term impact?”:

• “Increase permanent housing options and make housing access faster and easier” was overwhelmingly the top priority among all respondents, including Community Listening Session invitees, the Lived Experience Advisory Committee and the Youth Advisory Board, and MOHS staff.
• “Increase support to people who are unsheltered or living in encampments” was the second highest priority for Lived Experience Advisory Committee and Youth Advisory Board members and for MOHS staff, but the third highest priority for Community Listening Session invitees.
• “Increase temporary shelter options and make environments more welcoming with supports to exit more quickly to housing” was the third highest priority for Community Listening Session invitees and MOHS staff, but was not prioritized by Lived Experience Advisory Committee and Youth Advisory Board members who responded to the survey.