Santa Cruz County has launched an online dashboard where people can find information on housing and homelessness, according to county officials.

The dashboard tracks homelessness data, including information on the use of county-services such as emergency shelter, rapid rehousing, permanent supportive housing and transitional housing.

“Since 1980, the county has added 80,000 people but only 26,000 housing units, leading to increases in housing costs that exacerbate the numbers of people experiencing homelessness throughout the county,” county officials said in a news release.

A screenshot of Santa Cruz County’s new Housing Dashboard displays an interactive map showing the locations of existing affordable housing sites within the county, as well as those that are planned or under construction. (Santa Cruz County)

The dashboard has links to county programs like mental health services and the Housing for Health Partnership, a coalition of local governments and nonprofit providers focused on reducing homelessness.

It also features an interactive map with information on the more than 1,200 county-funded affordable rental units and the 200 units either in construction or under development.

County officials said the National Low Income Housing Coalition 2023 “Out of Reach” Report identified Santa Cruz County as the most expensive housing market for renters in the United States.

Kiley Russell writes primarily for Local News Matters on issues related to equity and the environment. A Bay Area native, he has lived most of his life in Oakland. He studied journalism at San Francisco State University, worked for the Associated Press and the former Contra Costa Times, among other outlets. He has covered everything from state legislatures, local governments, federal and state courts, crime, growth and development, political campaigns of various stripes, wildfires and the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.