WHEREAS, Robert Vernon Hess joined the City’s Managing Directors Office in 2001 as Deputy Managing Director for Special Needs Housing; and
WHEREAS, His responsibilities included oversight of the Office of Adult Services, the Office of Emergency Shelter Services, Riverview Home for the Aged, Housing Support Services and the Office of HIV Planning; and
WHEREAS, Under the leadership of Mr. Hess, the Office of Adult Services helped develop the Mayor’s Ten-Year Plan to End Homelessness; and
WHEREAS, During his tenure, the Office of Adult Services reduced the number of individuals living on the streets of Philadelphia by 60%; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Hess spearheaded the first
Housing First
program which served the chronically homeless individuals in the City resulting in more than 130 individuals moving from the streets and into permanent housing; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Hess and the Adult Services Team of nearly 250 people helped establish the Philadelphia Housing Support Services Center to act as a centralized gatekeeper for local housing resources; and
WHEREAS, Mr. Hess helped to create a twenty-four hour, seven-day-a-week emergency response and relocation system to move families and individuals in need of emergency relocation directly into supportive housing; and
WHEREAS, Last fall, Mayor Street asked Mr. Hess to head the city's relief effort for more than 1,400 Hurricane Katrina victims who fled to Philadelphia; and
WHEREAS, During his career, he received several important appointments including appointment by Mayor Street to the Philadelphia Homeless Trust Fund Board; appointment by Governor Rendell as a member of the Pennsylvania Housing Advisory Committee; and appointment by Mayor Schmoke to serve on the Baltimore City Homeless Relief Advisory Board; and
WHEREAS, Robert Hess will be leaving his position as the City’s Deputy Managing Director for Special Needs Housing; and
WHEREAS, He will be sorely missed; and
WHEREAS, We will be forever grateful for his dedication and commitment to improving the quality of life for the City’s less fortunate; and
WHEREAS, We congratulate him and wish him success in his new position as the commissioner of New York City's Department of Homeless Services; now therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That we hereby Recognize Robert Vernon Hess Deputy Managing Director for Special Needs Housing for his Years of Service to the City of Philadelphia and its Citizens and Congratulate him on his Appointment as the commissioner of New York City's Department of Homeless Services; and
FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be prepared as an expression of this body’s sincere sentiment for the contributions of Mr. Robert Vernon Hess.
End