LAKE COUNTY, Calif. — The Clearlake City Council last Thursday approved updates to a contract with Adventist Health for the operation of the Hope Center, a facility to transition individuals out of homelessness.

The 21-bed Hope Center, located on 3400 Emerson Drive in a building purchased by Adventist Health, opened in November 2020.

Originally a project of the organization Hope Rising, a nonprofit for which Adventist Health Clear Lake served as the “backbone agency,” in April 2020 the Clearlake City Council approved a memorandum of understanding, or MOU, with both Hope Rising and Adventist Health.

As part of that agreement, or MOU, the city contributed $500,000 in bond funds with requirements that it be operated for 15 years; that if the MOU is terminated prior to 15 years that the facility continues to be used for housing and support of the homeless and at-risk population in the Clearlake area and will not turn the property into an Adventist Health clinic or facility that solely benefits Adventist Health Clear Lake; that preference is given to homeless residents of Clearlake; and that Adventist Health Clear Lake and Hope Rising would take all responsibility for operations.

City Manager Alan Flora told the council that there were operational changes afoot leading to the request from Adventist Health for a change to the MOU.

Adventist Health officials asked to have removed language stating that, if the MOU ended before 15 years, that the organization “will not turn the property into an Adventist Health clinic or facility that solely benefits Adventist Health Clear Lake” and replaced with, “Adventist Health Clear Lake will ensure the Hope Center facility continues to be used for housing and support of the homeless and at-risk population in the Clearlake area.”

Colleen Assavapisitkul, president of Adventist Health Clear Lake, and Marilyn Wakefield, who manages grants and community programs for the hospital, asked the council to approve the changes.

They explained that California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal, or CalAIM — which the state Department of Health Care Services said is seeking to leverage Medicaid to address challenges such as homelessness — is part of their plan for making the Hope Center sustainable. That will allow them to continue to run it as a transitional housing facility.

CalAIM will allow them to bill for the services offered at Hope Center, such as recuperative care, housing navigation and sustainability.

“These are things that we’ve already been doing, it’s just now we’ve been able to bill for them,” said Wakefield.

They assured the council that they don’t plan to turn Hope Center into a medical clinic.

Councilwoman Joyce Overton was doubtful. “What I can see in the future is that this is really going to become a medical facility, transitional housing, and that the homeless are going to be left out in the rain.”

Wakefield said that’s not their intention.

“It may not be your intention, but I’ll almost guarantee you that will be what happens,” said Overton.

Referring to Restoration House, another housing facility that Adventist Health operates in Lower Lake, Overton said, “We have a house in Lower Lake already, why do we need to turn this one into basically the same thing?”

Assavapisitkul said the two facilities are not the same thing. She said Restoration House is for someone who needs assisted care, while Hope Center is designed as a transitional center for homeless people with wraparound care and services.

Wakefield said Adventist Health also signed a 15-year agreement with Partnership Health Plan when it gave money for Hope Center, and that agreement required that it would be kept as transitional housing for 15 years. They are now three years into that commitment.

During the discussion, Wakefield explained that a countywide care management system, funded through a grant with Lake County Behavioral Health, determines who gets priority for placement for housing based on criteria such as how much trauma and individuals has been through in the past two years, how long they have been homeless, if they have minor children and if they suffer from mental illness.

The council unanimously approved the contract amendment.

Last Thursday the council also approved interim policies and procedures manual for tribal
consultation, heard presentations on Shakespeare at the Lake 2023 and the Clearlake Police Department Safety Education Loan Forgiveness Program, and offered proclamations declaring May as Military Appreciation Month and May 7 to May 13 as Public Service Appreciation Week.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.