Fairfield leaders to discuss homelessness
Fairfield city leaders are expected to discuss the city's homelessness response and set priorities for the next two years during Tuesday's City Council meeting, as officials weigh budget constraints, shelter capacity and growing housing insecurity across the community.
According to a staff report, Fairfield continues to face significant challenges despite recent efforts to expand services and coordinate regional responses. The 2024 Solano County Point in Time Count identified 615 unhoused people in Fairfield and 1,725 countywide. Results from the 2026 count are still under federal review and are expected later this year, staff noted.
The report also highlights rising housing instability among local families. As of December 2025, the Fairfield-Suisun Unified School District reported 470 families - including 877 children - experiencing housing insecurity, which can include homelessness, unstable housing arrangements or unsafe living conditions.
Council members have identified reducing homelessness and expanding support services as a top city priority, staff explained in the report. In recent years, the city has funded emergency shelter beds, launched a street outreach program and partnered with regional agencies through Community Action Partnership Solano-Joint Powers Authority, or CapSolano JPA.
However, city officials say financial pressures are limiting what Fairfield can provide.
The city's budget deficit and resulting budge cuts, coupled with "reduction in federal and state funding, and city council's dissatisfaction with results from investment of certain providers" has forced the council to reduce operational funds for emergency shelters in the city "which has reduced the overall accessible capacity for emergency shelter within the city," the staff report notes.
Currently, Fairfield funds shelter beds at Change and New Beginnings as well as Mission Samoa, supporting an average of 26 beds nightly. During winter months, the city also funds a seasonal shelter at BayNorth Church of Christ that adds 10 additional beds. Council members previously directed staff to increase funding for Mission Samoa beginning next fiscal year, which is expected to add several more beds for single adults.
The city's outreach efforts have also shifted in recent years, staff notes. Fairfield launched a street outreach team in partnership with Change and New Beginnings in January 2025 after reductions to the city's Homeless Intervention Team. Under the current model, police focus primarily on enforcement while outreach workers provide social services and housing assistance.
According to the report, the ACCESS outreach team helped 84 people leave Fairfield streets between January 2025 and March 2026. Of those individuals, 38 percent moved into permanent housing while another 50 percent entered temporary housing arrangements such as emergency shelters, transitional housing or temporary stays with family or friends.
Despite those efforts, staff said major gaps remain in the city's homeless response system, particularly due to the lack of affordable housing.
"The biggest challenges faced by both the emergency shelter providers and outreach team is the lack of affordable housing capacity," the report states.
Officials cited rising rents, limited affordable housing units and a shortage of housing assistance vouchers as major barriers preventing people from transitioning into stable housing. Staff also noted that the number of people newly becoming homeless remains high because of housing costs, evictions and economic instability.
Tuesday's discussion is expected to include possible short-term strategies such as increasing shelter and interim housing capacity, expanding prevention and diversion programs, and creating more transitional housing pathways.
The report also notes service gaps for families and individuals who do not qualify for specialized state and federal programs focused on veterans or behavioral health populations. Officials said larger families often struggle to find shelter space, forcing some to sleep in vehicles, tents or motels.
Council members are also expected to discuss recovery-based sheltering programs. Staff reviewed San Francisco's Hope House program, a recovery-focused shelter model offering private living spaces and intensive support services, though the report notes the model does not comply with California's Housing First requirements and relies heavily on local and philanthropic funding.
Several behavioral health and recovery projects are already planned in Fairfield, including a 62-bed residential treatment center by Archway Recovery Services expected to open in fall 2026. Solano County Behavioral Health is also expanding its Recovery Campus with additional crisis stabilization beds, a peer respite program and a sobering center scheduled for completion in 2028.
The staff report also outlines uncertainty surrounding future homelessness funding. Statewide homelessness spending has declined sharply since pandemic-era funding peaks, and the governor's proposed 2026-27 budget does not include major new ongoing homelessness investments.
Fairfield officials say they are seeking additional direction from the council to establish clear goals and expectations for homelessness services moving forward.
The Fairfield City Council is scheduled to meet Tuesday at 5 p.m. at Fairfield City Hall, 1000 Webster Street.
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