Gerald Celestine knows Sacramento residents have a stake in how the city and county will spend federal stimulus dollars that are intended to counter homelessness.

Celestine, an active member of Sacramento’s Area 1 Neighborhood Advisory Group (NAG), planned a discussion for the April 20 NAG meeting so residents can brainstorm how they want their local governments to use about $4.8 million in federal monies for homelessness.

The pot of money will be distributed almost evenly between the county and city: The city is expected to receive $2.375 million, and the county expects $2.397 million.

Sacramento neighbors would like to express “some of our hopes and desires for this money,” Celestine said.

Residents can present their views on specific ways the money should be spent in two separate meetings on April 20.

Sacramento residents will discuss federal monies coming to the city and county at the Neighborhood Advisory Group (Area 1) meeting Monday at 6:30 p.m. The meeting will take place at the Hart Senior Center, which is located at 915 27th Street.

Shamus Roller, executive director of the Sacramento Housing Alliance, will explain to residents how the city and county are expected to receive the funds for homelessness through a new federal program.

The new federal effort, known as the Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program (HPRP), is part of the national stimulus package.

Roller points out, however, that the federal funds for this program are not going to solve the big financial problems for social and health services in the county and city. “The stimulus money is not a panacea,” he says, and “it’s not going to fix everything.”

A separate public meeting on the federal funding will be held earlier on Monday. The public is asked to weigh in on how the city and county should create its application for the federal monies to address homelessness at the local level. The public meeting will be held Monday from 3 to 5 p.m. at 2700 Fulton Avenue.

The Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency, county Department of Human Assistance and the Interagency Council on Homelessness are hosting the forum.

Cindy Cavanaugh, an assistant director for policy at the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency (SHRA), explains that SHRA will apply to the federal government for the funds.

The federal dollars will be used for homeless people to rent housing and for prevention of homelessness. Cavanaugh explains that in the “rapid-rehousing” model, homeless people are encouraged to find housing rather than live in shelters. Under this program, a homeless person could receive up to 18 months worth of funds to help cover the cost of rent, she said.

Roller said there is flexibility in the program. The HPRP monies can be used in various ways, including for utility bill costs, Roller said.

SHRA and the county’s Department of Human Assistance are planning the application for funds.

The city and county are almost guaranteed to receive the federal funds as long as they complete the application process, Cavanaugh said. Assuming the application for funding is accepted by HUD, the city and county can access the funding October 1.

The city and county’s application for the federal funds will be addressed in public hearings at both the City Council and the Sacramento Board of Supervisors.

Sacramento’s City Council will discuss the application at its May 12 meeting. The Board of Supervisors will address the issue at its May 13 meeting.

The deadline to send the application to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development is May 18.

After May 18, the application will be completed but the program will continue, Cavanaugh said. SHRA will hold stakeholder meetings and form the details of the funding program with the help of the Interagency Council on Homelessness.

Kathleen Haley is a staff reporter for The Sacramento Press.