Strategic Plan: Non-Housing Community Development Plan:
Public Service Needs

According to staff at the Free Medical Clinic and from public meeting comments, the number one need is to assist patients in acquiring and purchasing prescription medication. The Free Medical Clinic's budget is unable to cover the costs of medication and they rely solely on contributions by drug companies. Free Medical Clinic staff is also seeing more persons with chronic illnesses resulting in an increased need for medication for persons with psychiatric disabilities, diabetes, and hypertension, conditions made worse by being homeless and unemployed. Consumers also noted the need for assistance in acquiring prescription eyeglasses and hearing aids.

A survey conducted by the Iowa Center for AIDS Resources and Education (ICARE), shows there is an immediate need for a service network to help HIV/AIDS individuals stay in their current living situations and to enable them to live wherever they choose. The service network would include provisions for assistance with acquiring and purchasing prescription medication. This prescription assistance would then help to reduce the financial burden and leave more funds for housing costs.

Nutrition needs are currently addressed by various groups and agencies. The Crisis Center Food Bank requests for assistance increased 38% from 15,907 in 1994 to 21,923 in 1998. The Free Lunch program has had a steady but manageable increase in lunches served over the past few years. The Salvation Army serves meals and has also reported steady increases. A relatively new service, provided by Table to Table, rescues food from bakeries, restaurants and other food service companies and distributes it to organizations serving low-income persons.

Childcare issues have repeatedly arisen at CITY STEPS meetings and through discussions with staff members of local human service providers. 4Cs primary purpose is to promote the well being of children and their families by assisting parents, childcare providers, employers, and others with their childcare related needs. This encompasses addressing challenges to the community's childcare system, documenting needs and trends in the childcare delivery system, and serving as a resource for planning and developing programs.

In the past year, the 4Cs Resource and Referral Program conducted 1,050 parent intakes, listed 349 individual child care providers, and distributed 7,000 directories of child care services with 60 child care center and preschool entries, and provided consumer education as requested. According to 4Cs' statistics, documented childcare needs in the Johnson County area have increased dramatically. The unmet needs are strongly focused on infant care; before/after school care; care for children whose parents work second shifts and weekends; and childcare for homeless families.

The Elderly Services Agency (ESA) reports that respite care for the elderly is an unmet need in Iowa City. According to ESA, respite care is available at Mercy Home Healthcare, Homelife, and Hawkeye Medical Services at an average cost of $10 an hour, which is beyond the means of 75% of those who need it. ESA receives an average of two inquiries a day about respite care for the elderly, but they can only provide a total of 12 to 14 hours a day of in-home respite care. In FY99 ESA provided 13,684 hours of in-home respite care.

The ARC of Johnson County provides respite care services for persons with mental retardation and developmental disabilities and their families. The ARC reports serving 881 individuals in all of its programs during 1998. An expanded need for respite services is anticipated.

The ARC also is working to improve summer/before/after school care options for adolescents over the age of 12 with developmental disabilities. Historically Handicare met this need, but that agency has determined that it can no longer provide quality services for children over the age of 12.

The one consistent theme at every CITY STEPS public meeting and in discussions between staff and residents was transportation. Transportation to jobs, day care, medical services, school, and shelter was noted as one of the most urgent needs. The current bus system focuses on the downtown area, with nearly every route beginning or ending downtown. In recent years adjustments have been made to alter bus routes and expand services. Despite these efforts, additional transportation alternatives need to be sought.

The bus system also has limited evening hours, extremely limited Saturday service and no Sunday service. The ongoing development of businesses and residential areas on the fringes of Iowa City and neighboring towns only emphasizes the need to review the existing system. To encourage utilization of mass transit the city started operating two bus routes in the downtown and surrounding neighborhoods that are free.

The SEATS program, which provides transportation services to citizens who are elderly and/or disabled, is currently undergoing a funding review. This service is vital to the day-to-day lives of persons who are elderly and disabled in Johnson County and Iowa City

Additionally, the Free Bus Ticket Program continues to be an important link between low-income residents and jobs, services, and housing.

Legal aid for low-income persons was discussed at CITY STEPS meetings as an important need for issues such as tenant/landlord disputes, and protection of basic rights, particularly for elderly persons. At this time the current needs are being met.

Basic coping and day-to-day living skills were mentioned as an important need at the CITY STEPS public meetings and discussion. Support for creating and expanding living skills training programs was cited by several agencies.

At present there are several organizations that address a variety of living skill needs. Successful Living, Inc., HACAP, Department of Human Services, Johnson County Extension Service and LIFE Skills, Inc. These organizations provide living skills, education and assistance to children, adults, families, and persons with special needs. Staff from the Johnson County Extension service said that they work with households at risk of losing their housing due to lack of home maintenance, home safety, budgeting skills and credit counseling. Both the HACAP and Successful Living, Inc. supportive service programs are targeting persons in transitional housing. Assistance is provided to help these households gain a sense of responsibility and accountability to themselves, their neighbors and their landlords. If additional staff funding were available, it is anticipated that these programs or others could be significantly expanded to assist more households and provide more services.

The general trend in providing care and services to persons with special needs is towards non-facility-based, outpatient, independent living services. This trend reflects a move toward incorporating the changes mandated by managed health care systems. Virtually every aspect of service to special needs populations is affected, including services for persons with mental illness, mental retardation, physical disability, and drug and alcohol addiction. Programs providing these services need to be enhanced to meet current and anticipated future demands.

The Iowa City Police Department operates the D.A.R.E. program along with police-sponsored youth recreation programs to help keep youth aware of crime issues. Neighborhood Watch and Block Parent programs also operate.

Other programs provided through MECCA, Big Brothers/Big Sisters, the Iowa City Community Schools and Neighborhood Centers of Johnson County, also deal with crime awareness and prevention.

Youth Homes, United Action for Youth, and Mayor's Youth Employment Program have all seen consistent increases in their service needs and anticipate further increases over the next five years.

United Action for Youth (UAY) assists youth and families by offering counseling and intervention programs, and providing prevention and youth development programs that make use of young people's talent and skills. UAY assisted 1,893 Johnson County residents between July 1997 and June 1998. There is a waiting list for persons wanting family counseling.

Mayor's Youth Employment Program (MYEP) operates several programs. They assisted 168 Johnson County youth between July 1998 and June 1999. MYEP maintains a waiting list of 33 youth.

Youth Homes operates the Youth Emergency Shelter, Pursuing Adventures in Learning (PAL), Young Women's Residential Treatment Center, Parent Support Services, and Structured Community Independent Living Services. Youth Homes served 676 Johnson County residents between July 1997 and June 1998.

Before and after school programs are currently provided at the elementary level. There appears to be a need for after school programs at the Junior High School level.

The need for improved communication and education between tenants and landlords was cited at several CITY STEPS meetings. Uncertainty about regulations, fear of eviction and feelings of disenfranchisement serve to decrease the quality of life for low-income tenants. Confusion regarding regulations and program requirements discourage landlords from willingly participating in rental assistance programs. To address these issues the Iowa City Housing Authority (ICHA) has embarked on a public relations and education campaign. To convey information about rent assistance programs, the ICHA distributes newsletters, attends landlord association meetings, and works one-on-one with tenants, property managers and landlords.

The Human Rights Coordinator and the Human Rights Commission have an ongoing program which provides both counseling and complaint investigation, and the outreach and education of landlords and tenants. A constant stream of complaints is evidence of the need for these activities. Complaints include intimidation by landlords, discrimination against those living in public or assisted housing, and eviction without cause. In October 1999 the City of Iowa City adopted an "Substantially Equivalent" ordinance that allows the City to investigate discrimination complaints.

ESA provides a shared housing program which matches elderly home owners with a room to rent and tenants (most frequently graduate students) needing rooms. Currently there are 14 matches in the program. Elderly participants cite the security of having someone in the house at night, the convenience of an in-home person they can count on for errands and housekeeping help, and the extra income from the rent, as benefits of the program. ESA staff feels this program is comfortably meeting the market demand for such a service. There are usually 18-25 matches at any given time. (See also Transportation Needs and Legal Aid.)

While existing methods of assessment and referral appear to be doing an adequate job of directing individuals to sources of service, there is increasing concern within the homeless and service provider communities that current methods, while cooperative, are not coordinated as well as they could be. The result is that persons in crisis are frequently sent back and forth from one agency to another, often across town, to secure services or financial assistance.

One solution, suggested more than once in CITY STEPS public meetings, was to develop a single, centrally located facility for coordinating referrals. Such a facility may provide satellite office space for agencies to conduct initial assessment and intake interviews, telephones for clients to use for contacting unrepresented agencies, a call-in hotline for people in need, and a well-stocked pamphlet display for service information. Another opportunity for coordination may exist in accessing existing computer networks for linking agencies and sharing information.

At the administrative level, coordination of human services is provided by the Human Services Coordinator for the Johnson County Council of Governments. This office provides budgetary, statistical, and programmatic analyses to Iowa City's City Council, as well as the Johnson County Board of Supervisors in order to aid in making sound decisions regarding funding and policy matters for human services. As state and federal aid to human service agencies decreases, the need for more local planning and coordination becomes imperative.