Establishment_and_Operation_of_Interim_Housing_for_Families.pdf

County of San Mateo

Request For Information (RFI) for Establishment and

Operation of Interim Housing for Families

Human Services Agency - Center on Homelessness

RFI No. 2027-RFI-00035

RFI Contact: LisaAnn Wolfskill lwolfskill@smcgov.org

1. Introduction and Schedule

The County of San Mateo (the “County” or “SMC”) covers most of the San Francisco Peninsula. The region covers 744 miles and is home to nearly 800,000 residents and 20 incorporated cities. The County provides for the health and welfare of all residents within its borders and serves as the local government for the unincorporated areas. Innovation thrives here in industries including bioscience, computer software, green technology, hospitality, financial management, health care, education and transportation.

The County prides itself on how that prosperity fosters its commitment to protecting and enhancing the health, safety, welfare and natural resources of the community.

1.1. Summary

Through this Request for Information (RFI), the County of San Mateo (the County) Human Services

Agency (HSA) Center on Homelessness (COH) seeks information from organizations that may be interested in establishing and/or operating an additional family interim housing program within San

Mateo County Information gathered will assist the County in planning for expanded family interim housing capacity and a potential future solicitation for establishment and operation of one additional family interim housing program. This RFI is issued for information-gathering purposes only. No funds or contracts can or will be awarded through this RFI.

This RFI is part of a market research effort to assess provider interest and capacity to add one family interim housing program in San Mateo County.

The County is particularly interested in understanding:

• Whether qualified organizations are interested in operating a new family interim housing program;

• Whether qualified organizations are interested in procuring, leasing, acquiring, rehabilitating, developing, and/or constructing a facility for that purpose, including whether any already have a potential site in mind;

• Whether organizations would prefer to perform both the facility and operating roles, or perform one and partner with another organization;

• What supports, partnerships, or County involvement may be needed to make a project feasible.

Information gathered through this process may inform program design, procurement strategy, service expectations, and a potential future Request for Proposals (RFP) or other solicitation.

This RFI provides background on the County’s existing family shelter system, the need for additional family shelter capacity, and considerations for adding another family shelter program. Responses to this

RFI are for informational and planning purposes only and do not obligate respondents to participate in any future procurement or take any other action.

The County, through HSA’s COH, coordinates the homeless crisis response system. The system is designed to help individuals and families experiencing homelessness move toward stable housing. COH works countywide and collaborates with community-based organizations, public agencies, housing providers, and other stakeholders to strengthen the local homelessness response system.

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Family interim housing services are intended for households with children who are experiencing homelessness or a housing crisis and have no safe alternative housing options. In San Mateo County, these programs function as short-term, housing-focused interventions designed to provide a safe, decent, and family-appropriate place to stay while families stabilize, address immediate crises, and move as quickly as possible toward permanent housing.

The County has not identified a specific region or facility for a new interim housing site. The County is seeking information from community-based organizations, shelter operators, housing and service providers, and other qualified entities with experience developing, establishing, and/or operating shelters or interim housing for families experiencing homelessness. The County is particularly interested in learning about provider capacity and considerations related to facility procurement and the provision of services relevant to adding another family shelter program to the County’s current system.

1.2. Contact Information

LisaAnn Wolfskill Contract Administrator Email: lwolfskill@smcgov.org Phone: (650) 802-7919

Department:

Human Services Agency - Center on Homelessness

Department Head:

Claire Cunningham Director

1.3. Timeline

RFI Released August 7, 2026

Informational Session #1 (Mandatory) August 19, 2026, 12:00pm https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/25862665628320

1?p=FmmePaSPDXoCBvGbgW

Informational Session #2 (Non-

Mandatory)

September 16, 2026, 12:00pm https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/23396459056455

1?p=aDUsZqS6ikeFExUwXV

Submittal Due Date and Time September 30, 2026, 12:00pm

2. Scope of Work mailto:lwolfskill@smcgov.org tel:(650)802-7919 https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/258626656283201?p=FmmePaSPDXoCBvGbgW https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/258626656283201?p=FmmePaSPDXoCBvGbgW https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/233964590564551?p=aDUsZqS6ikeFExUwXV https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/233964590564551?p=aDUsZqS6ikeFExUwXV

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2.1. Family Interim Housing Context

Through this RFI, the County seeks information to inform the possible addition of one new interim housing site or program for families within the County’s existing system.

2.2. Goals of Future Family Shelter Services

The County anticipates that any future procurement would emphasize a model that:

• Provides safe, decent, habitable, and family-appropriate interim housing;

• Operates as a low-barrier, Housing First intervention;

• Serves families with a range of needs, including families with very low or no income, disabilities, behavioral health needs, histories of domestic violence, criminal legal system involvement, and other barriers to housing stability;

• Prioritizes quick connection to permanent housing;

• Integrates housing-focused case management and service linkage;

• Coordinates closely with CES and County systems;

• Uses trauma-informed, culturally responsive, and de-escalation-centered practices;

• Supports child and family wellbeing;

• Maintains compliance with federal, state, and local requirements; and

• Produces reliable data, performance reporting, and continuous quality improvement.

2.3. Information Sought: Facility Development/Procurement, and Program Operations

The County is seeking information on respondent experience, interest, and recommendations related to the possible development, establishment, and/or operation of one additional family interim housing program.

In particular, the County seeks information from vendors about their capacity and considerations for establishing a new program site, and potential approaches to do so, such as:

• Leasing a building for use as family interim housing;

• Acquiring an existing building, including a multifamily or apartment-style property, and rehabilitating or adapting it for interim housing use;

• Identifying a site and developing or constructing a new interim housing facility;

• Partnering with another organization, developer, property owner, or other entity with real estate or development expertise; or

• Operating an interim housing program in a facility owned, leased, acquired, developed, or otherwise secured by another party, including the County.

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The County is interested in understanding whether respondents have:

• Experience with real estate acquisition, leasing, rehabilitation, adaptive reuse, development, construction, or facility start-up for shelter, interim housing, affordable housing, or similar community-serving uses;

• The organizational capacity to lead both facility procurement/development and program operations, or the ability to partner with another entity to do so;

• Interest in one role only, such as development only or operations only; and

• Access to, or awareness of, a potential site, building, or development opportunity in San Mateo

County.

The County is also interested in input on how a high-quality family interim housing site could be established as cost-effectively and quickly as possible, consistent with applicable regulations, community needs, and long-term operational viability.

For planning purposes, the County is generally interested in concepts with sufficient scale to support efficient operations and staffing, meaning 15 or more family units. The County welcomes comments on any scale that the respondent believes is operationally and financially viable.

The County is also interested in respondent perspectives on the program operations associated with a future family interim housing site, including:

• 24/7 site operations, safety, and habitability;

• Housing-focused case management and service coordination;

• Family-centered supports, including coordination related to children’s needs;

• Referral coordination and integration with CES and County systems; and

• Data collection, reporting, and continuous quality improvement.

The County is not seeking a detailed service proposal through this RFI. Rather, the County seeks general information regarding respondent experience, operating approach, partnership model, and capacity to provide or coordinate these functions.

2.4. Operating Expectations

Any future family interim housing program would likely be expected to operate in accordance with principles and requirements such as:

• Housing First and low-barrier access;

• Equal access and nondiscrimination requirements;

• Applicable accessibility requirements;

• Trauma-informed, culturally responsive, and family-centered practices;

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• Health and safety standards;

• Confidentiality and privacy requirements; and

• Participation in County-required data, reporting, and coordination processes.

The County may follow up with respondents by email or virtual meeting to further discuss interest, experience, and capacity related to a possible future family interim housing opportunity. No presentations are required as part of this RFI.

3. Submission Requirements

3.1. Submission Deadline

Proposals must be electronically received by 12:00 pm, on Wednesday, September 30, 2026 via the

County's eProcurement system.

Allow sufficient time for the upload to complete by the Due Date and Time. Partial uploads will automatically terminate, and proposals will be rejected. The eProcurement system submission time will be the official submission time. The County will not be responsible for and may not accept proposals that are late due to slow internet connections or for any other failure of the eProcurement system.

NOTE: The County does not maintain the eProcurement system and is not liable for site failures or technical problems. To resolve technical issues, contact OpenGov Technical Support directly by using the real time chat located in the lower right hand corner of the screen, or via email at procurement-support@opengov.com https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/smcgov

3.2. Pre-submission Registration

Organizations or individuals interested in responding to this solicitation must register online with the

County of San Mateo at:

• https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/smcgov

It is recommended that organizations complete this registration as soon as possible. The County will not be responsible for and may not accept proposals that are late due to a failure to timely register with the eProcurement system.

3.3. Submission via eProcurement Portal

Required Documents

Documents requested in the RFI

Electronic Submissions

Include the proposer name and the RFI title and number in each filename. Submit proposals via the eProcurement website, allowing sufficient time for the upload to complete by the Due Date and Time. As noted above, the eProcurement portal submission time will be the official submission time, and partial uploads will automatically terminate, and proposals will be rejected. Contact eProcurement Portal with technical questions regarding this site.

mailto:procurement-support@opengov.com mailto:procurement-support@opengov.com https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/smcgov https://procurement.opengov.com/portal/smcgov

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Conflicts between Certain Requirements

It is recommended that organizations complete this registration as soon as possible. The County will not be responsible for and may not accept proposals that are late due to a failure to timely register with the eProcurement system.

Format

Documents should be created in the following format:

• Text should be Times New Roman (12-point minimum font size) and unjustified (i.e., with a ragged-right margin)

• Pages should have margins of at least one inch on all sides (excluding headers and footers)

• If the proposal is lengthy, a Table of Contents should be included.

• PDF format is preferred.

Errors in Proposals

The County will not be liable for any errors in proposals. Proposals may be rejected as unresponsive if they are late, incomplete, missing pages or information, or cannot be opened for any reason. The County may waive minor irregularities, but such waiver will not modify any remaining RFI requirements.

4. Minimum Qualifications and Solution Summary

4.1. Minimum Qualifications

4.1.1. Organization is currently in good legal standing*

This is to be adjusted by department (instructions)

☐ Yes

☐ No

*Response required

4.1.2. Organization is currently providing services in San Mateo County, and/or can demonstrate relevant experience and ability to operate or develop services within San

Mateo County. *

☐ Yes

☐ No

*Response required

4.1.3. Letter of Interest Form

Please see Attachment A for more information on the Letter of Interest (LOI) Form.

The County encourages respondents to provide narrative information, as applicable, regarding:

• Organizational background and relevant experience;

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• Interest in facility procurement, development, partnership, operations, or some combination of these roles;

• Types of facility models the respondent would consider feasible;

• Approximate project scale the respondent believes is viable;

• Relevant family interim housing, shelter, housing, real estate, or development experience;

• Supports, partnerships, or County actions that would help make a project feasible; and

Any other information the respondent believes would help the County understand available options

4.2. Important Notices

This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes. It does not constitute a solicitation for bids or proposals, and it does not commit the County to issue an RFP, enter into any agreement, or pay any costs incurred in preparing a response.

Responses to this RFI may become public records subject to applicable law. Respondents should clearly identify any information they believe is exempt from disclosure and the basis for that belief; however, the

County makes no guarantee that such information will be withheld if disclosure is required by law.

The County reserves the right to modify or cancel this RFI at any time.

4.2. Important Notices