Solutions for Change reveals proposal for Vista for Green Oak Ranch property
The nonprofit would buy the 110 acre site at Green Oak Ranch, gift the city of Vista 50 acres; new bill aims to open up funding for non-Housing First nonprofits
VISTA — One year ago, Solutions for Change and the Green Oak Ranch Land Board began to hammer out a land sale to address homeless services in the city.
Solutions for Change, a nonprofit homeless service and housing provider, is, or perhaps was, on track to acquire 110 acres, according to Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder Chris Megison. His organization signed a letter of intent in February with Green Oaks Land Board, which is a faith-based residential recovery program, nestled just north of Sycamore Avenue and east of Melrose Drive near Shadowridge Park.
However, Solutions for Change announced a partnership proposal on Friday to include the city of Vista to revert some of the land back to the city. The proposal includes Solutions for Change buying the 110 acres and entering into an agreement for a lease with an option to buy. The rent would be $1 per year and $1 to purchase, Megison said.
In closed session on May 28, the Vista City Council directed staff to obtain an appraisal on the property putting yet another player into the mix for the land. During the meeting, about 300 residents attended in protest of the county plan with many saying the land, or at least part of it, should be considered for other uses such as ball fields, trails, parks or others.
Mayor John Franklin and City Councilman Dan O’Donnell, whose district Green Oak Ranch resides, both said other uses are preferred. Franklin said he’s skeptical of a county-run homeless facility, while O’Donnell was leery of such a massive project.
The two, along with other residents, said Vista has worked hard to provide its share of facilities and programs such as a Safe Parking Lot, a shelter, houses the jail and two homeless nonprofits are based in the city — Solutions for Change and Operation HOPE — to name a few.
The city’s action was a reaction to a bombshell during the April 30 meeting of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors. The county is proposing a $12 million purchase for the land and more than $300 million to construct a large-scale county-run “regional campus for healing.” The move shocked Solutions for Change and threw a curveball into the issue, Meigson said.
“We are against the county going in there,” he added. “I can’t think of anything worse than the county going in there. I call it what it is, taxpayer-funded drug housing. I know it well. I was there when they used the heavy hand of government with existing apartment complexes that I built with our business model, they said it’s a different time now. You got to do drug (allowance).”
A new proposal
Solutions for Change sent a press release on Friday announcing a partnership proposal for the city. Meigson explained in an interview Solutions for Change was one of four entities to be approached by Green Oak Ranch in 2023.
He said his organization has also signed a purchase agreement, but Green Oak Ranch is holding, for now, as they review the other options. Regardless, Megison and Solutions for Change have proposed a partnership with the city, although the city has not signed off yet.
The proposal includes the following:
1) Leasing 50 acres to the city for $1 per year with an option for the city to purchase for $1;
2) Maintain open space while developing a vocational training academy to address root causes of homelessness;
3) Use Solutions for Change’s model to solve root causes through drug-free, accountability-based services and vocational training.
Other “promises” from Solutions for Change include community access to open space and ball fields, a $12 million cost savings for the city not to purchase the land and long-term homelessness solutions. By not spending $12 million on the land, or perhaps a lower price, Megison said it allows the city to invest those funds into developing the land for open space, ball fields, trails or other possibilities.
![The possible development of 110 acres at Green Oak Ranch has spurred controversy in Vista. Solutions for Change has signed a letter of intent to purchase and move its base operations and is proposing on gifting the city of Vista 50 acres. File photo The possible development of 110 acres at Green Oak Ranch has spurred controversy in Vista. Solutions for Change has signed a letter of intent to purchase and move its base operations and is proposing on gifting the city of Vista 50 acres. File photo](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/w_1456,c_limit,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F93280be6-d1b1-459a-9ed6-135f4b2b7759_1300x762.jpeg)
But now, Megison said his team is still focused on working with Green Oak Ranch to sign a purchase agreement. The deal would include working with the city so Solutions for Change can move its base of operations, workforce development center and vocational academy to the ranch.
Megison said they would keep their four-acre property on West California Avenue, which currently has housing and services. The new vocational academy would be expanded to reach 100 families from its current 50, but would need city approval, he said.
Additionally, Solutions for Change would keep ownership of 60 acres and sell back the other 50 to the city for $1, he said.
“If we get into contract, we will gift the city the 50 acres,” Megison added. “It’s a really nice deal for the city. This is the most ideal scenario and would save them $12 million to buy it. Solutions would buy and give it (50 acres) to them for $1. We would keep 60 acres.”
Over the years
Solutions for Change was founded in 1999 by Chris and Tammy Megison to help address homelessness in North County. They operated in a public-private capacity, Chris Megison said, as government funding covered their purchase or construction for their facilities and housing, while private donations focused on operations.
He said the arrangement was ideal as his experience with government-run facilities and operations had been proven to be the wrong pathway. Megison, a native of Detroit, said he’s seen how large-scale projects in his hometown, New York, Chicago and elsewhere failed to address root causes and led to disastrous results.
Megison said the efforts of his organization, and some others, were going well. His nonprofit requires sobriety and other programs, along with housing through a phased approach.
The clients attend a comprehensive 700-day vocational program, along with others, and once they “graduate,” they move into permanent and substance-free housing.
Solutions for Change was rolling in the 2000s and 2010s as they built five properties in Carlsbad, Escondido Oceanside and Vista.
“We were actually lifted up statewide, countywide as a model because it was public-private,” Megison explained. “We used the public (money) to build the bricks and sticks and we’d keep the government out of the operations and use private funds for that. It was this great kind of partnership and it worked really good.”
But in 2016, the state funding dried up as the state and federal governments moved to Housing First, which is a low to no-barrier program where substances are allowed, sobriety is not required and service participation is optional.
However, government funding was only 20% of the revenue stream for Solutions for Change, so they were able to survive the change in state law. However, their Carlsbad property, on Chestnut Avenue adjacent to Interstate 5, was in doubt.
Megison said they applied for funding for the Carlsbad complex but were denied several times and recently sold back the property to the city. Even though he tried, he said the nonprofit had to give back all five apartment complexes to the state due to Housing First.
The other facilities remain, and a new bill in the legislature may change the future of how homelessness and sobriety-focused providers operate.
“These are moms and dads that have had serious, serious problems,” Megison added. “The state and the feds, especially the state, say homelessness is caused by a lack of affordable housing. That is a straight-up freaking lie. We’ve got hundreds of years of experience. Every day we see people coming to our door and a lack of affordable housing had nothing to do with them becoming homeless. It has been catastrophic. They’re not addressing the root causes. They’re addressing the symptoms.”
He also railed against the state’s failures of being able to track $24 billion spent on homelessness over the past five years. Over those five years, the homeless population percentage has increase by double digits leading to an outcry over accountability, financial responsibility and more, Megison said.
New legislation
Authored by Matt Haney (D-SF), Assembly Bill 2479 would amend the Housing First law to allow for 25% of funds allocated for homelessness to be used for sober and drug-free recovery housing.
In 2016, California passed Housing First, which ensured all homelessness policy was focused on getting people into housing without any requirements on credit, income, criminal background or sobriety, according to a press release from Haney. It also led to the creation of harm reduction-focused supportive housing allowing “some drug use” on site, and a ban of state funding for sober housing.
In 2022, the Federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) modified its Housing First guidelines to include drug-free recovery housing as a component of Housing First, Haney said. California law hasn’t been updated to reflect these guidelines. As a result, drug-free recovery housing is still unable to receive state funding, despite it being a widely proven and critical tool in confronting addiction.
“Many people seeking recovery don't want to live next to others who are still using drugs, and they shouldn't be forced to,” Haney added. “These drug-free recovery models allow for a community of people who are all on a journey to be fully sober to help keep each other accountable and make sure that they have the support needed to not fall back into drug use or homelessness.”
Meigson said he supports the bill but cautions about harm reduction efforts citing open drug markets in other cities and taxpayer-funded distribution of alcohol to homeless or addicted residents in San Francisco.
Still, he said the move to include more solutions other than Housing First is a step in the right direction.