Homelessness Programs
The City of Riverside developed a Homelessness Action Plan to reduce homelessness in the city with input from social service partners, individuals with lived experience, businesses, and residents. The plan is guided by Envision Riverside 2025, the Housing & Homelessness Committee’s goals, and the City’s Housing First Policy.
Outreach Services
The homeless outreach team assists individuals experiencing homelessness with connections to services that support safety, stability, and long-term housing outcomes.
Services may include shelter referrals, employment referrals, California identification support, social security benefits assistance, substance abuse treatment placement, medical service referrals, psychological support referrals, bus rides home, and other supportive services.
Riverside Access Center
The Riverside Access Center is the City of Riverside’s centralized, multi-service drop-in day center dedicated to supporting individuals experiencing homelessness.
Located on the Hulen Place campus, the Access Center serves as a welcoming entry point to resources designed to promote stability, dignity, and pathways to permanent housing.
Guests can access a range of on-site supportive services, including street outreach, case management, housing navigation, employment assistance, benefits enrollment, health and behavioral health referrals, and basic needs support. By bringing essential services together in one location, the Access Center provides a coordinated, person-centered approach to meeting immediate needs while connecting individuals to long-term housing solutions.
Through partnerships with local nonprofit organizations, public agencies, and community providers, the Riverside Access Center plays a key role in the City’s broader Homeless Action Plan by helping individuals move from crisis to stability and toward self-sufficiency.
Emergency Shelters
Bridge Housing Shelter
The Bridge Housing Shelter Program provides temporary, non-congregate shelter for individuals experiencing homelessness who are preparing to transition into permanent housing. Designed to provide a safe, private, and supportive environment, the program serves as a critical bridge between homelessness and stable housing.
Priority is given to individuals experiencing homelessness within the City of Riverside who have been matched to a permanent housing resource, such as a housing voucher, but are awaiting placement into a permanent home. During their stay, participants receive individualized case management, housing navigation, and supportive services to help them successfully secure and maintain permanent housing.
The Bridge Housing Program reflects the City of Riverside's commitment to creating housing-focused solutions that promote stability, dignity, and long-term self-sufficiency for residents experiencing homelessness.
Path of Life Emergency Shelter
The Path of Life Emergency Shelter provides safe, temporary refuge for individuals experiencing homelessness, offering immediate access to shelter, basic needs, and supportive services in a structured and compassionate environment.
Operated in partnership with community-based providers, the shelter is designed to help individuals stabilize during a time of crisis while connecting them to individualized case management, housing navigation, and other critical resources. Services focus on addressing immediate safety needs while supporting each guest in taking meaningful steps toward permanent housing.
Through coordinated care and a person-centered approach, the Path of Life Emergency Shelter plays a vital role in the City’s continuum of housing and homelessness services, helping individuals move from unsheltered conditions toward stability, recovery, and long-term self-sufficiency.
Path of Life Family Shelter
The Path of Life Family Shelter provides safe, temporary housing and supportive services for families experiencing homelessness. The program is designed to ensure that families have a stable and secure environment while they work toward regaining permanent housing.
Families are supported through individualized case management, housing navigation, and connections to essential community resources, including employment assistance, benefits enrollment, and referrals for health and behavioral health services. Services are tailored to meet the unique needs of each household, with a focus on stability, self-sufficiency, and long-term housing outcomes.
Through a compassionate, family-centered approach, the Path of Life Family Shelter helps parents and children remain together while accessing the tools and support needed to transition from homelessness into safe, stable, and permanent housing.
Operation SafeHouse Emergency Shelter
Operation SafeHouse Emergency Shelter is a 24-hour emergency shelter serving runaway, homeless, and at-risk youth ages 11–17 in Riverside County. The program provides a safe, supportive, and structured environment where youth can stabilize during a time of crisis while receiving immediate care and comprehensive services.
Services include up to three weeks of emergency shelter, nutritious meals, counseling, attempts at family reunification, an on-site education program, aftercare support, and access to a 24-hour toll-free crisis line. Programs are designed to promote the health, wellness, and overall well-being of youth served.
While in care, youth receive counseling from Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists, Associate Marriage and Family Therapists, or Marriage and Family Therapist Interns. Operation SafeHouse also provides practicum training opportunities and partners with local universities and online programs to support clinical supervision and professional development for interns.
Through a trauma-informed, youth-centered approach, Operation SafeHouse plays a critical role in the community’s continuum of care by helping young people move from crisis situations toward safety, stability, and long-term well-being.
Family/Friend Reunification Program
The Family and Friend Reunification Program supports individuals experiencing homelessness by helping them safely reconnect with family members, friends, or other identified support networks who are willing and able to provide temporary or ongoing housing and assistance.
The program is designed to quickly stabilize individuals by facilitating safe, voluntary reunification when appropriate. Staff work closely with participants to assess eligibility, verify safe placement options, and coordinate travel or relocation assistance when needed. Supportive services are also provided to help ensure a smooth transition, including case management follow-up and referrals to community resources in the destination location.
By strengthening natural support systems and reducing barriers to stable housing, the Family and Friend Reunification Program serves as a critical intervention within the broader continuum of care, offering individuals an immediate pathway out of homelessness while preserving dignity, choice, and connection to supportive relationships.
Other Resources
Get Help
Access City homelessness assistance information and resources for individuals and families seeking support.
Visit Get Help opens in a new tabHousing First Strategy
Review the City’s Housing First Strategy, which guides efforts to connect people experiencing homelessness with stable housing and supportive services.
View Housing First Strategy opens in a new tabHomeConnect
HomeConnect Riverside, administered by Riverside University Health System – Behavioral Health, serves as Riverside County’s Coordinated Entry System for individuals and families experiencing homelessness. Through a collaborative and person-centered approach, HomeConnect connects residents with housing resources, supportive services, and community-based programs designed to promote long-term stability and well-being.
By coordinating assessments, referrals, and access to housing interventions, HomeConnect helps ensure that individuals and families with the greatest needs are connected to appropriate resources. Working closely with service providers, local jurisdictions, and community partners, HomeConnect plays a critical role in creating a more efficient, equitable, and responsive homeless services system throughout Riverside County.
Homelessness Planning Documents
View the City’s homelessness planning documents, including the Homeless Action Plan and annual performance outcomes.
Homeless Action Plan
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Annual Performance Outcomes
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