Amid a number of recent conversations about the housing affordability crisis in Maplewood and beyond, Maplewood leaders discussed the impact of recent efforts to help residents who are at risk of eviction.
The effort is called “Diversion Services” and it’s being provided to Maplewood through a contract with Collaborative Support Programs of New Jersey, or CSPNJ, which also provides homeless outreach services to the township in coordination with the municipal Department of Health.
At the August 5 Maplewood Board of Health meeting, Lasheema Sanders Edwards reported that CSPNJ had received 19 diversion referrals in Maplewood for the period from November 1, 2024 to April 30, 2025, with three of those being completed and processed.
Regarding the three completed diversion referrals, Sanders Edwards explained, “We had a family that was facing eviction and within two days their back rent was paid and the eviction was stopped. In addition to that, another family was relocated. We also provided a security deposit and first month’s rent, so they successfully relocated and are in their new home. And finally we had an individual who found affordable housing and we paid the security deposit and first month’s rent.”
“I also want to put out there that our funds had ran out at some point, but we have been replenished, so we are looking forward to helping more folks get served,” said Sanders Edwards, who also provided an update on CSPNJ’s full services in Maplewood from November through April, including providing food assistance to 221 individuals, helping 127 individuals with Dept. of Motor Vehicle (DMV) appointments — “and that also includes getting IDs for individuals,” said Sanders Edwards — connecting 116 people with wellness center services, providing transportation, helping people complete Social Security Income (SSI) benefit applications, and more.
Sanders Edwards reported that from November 2024 through April 2025, CSPNJ had engaged with 106 individuals in Maplewood for homeless outreach services. In a announcement last year, the Township described CSPNJ’s outreach services as taking place “Tuesday through Saturday at varying shifts, totaling twenty hours a week. Staff members visit locations
She explained that Diversion Services were “like a Housing First model from my understanding. So even if that includes car repair services to help them stay employed in order to keep their housing, that also could be relocation services if they need to relocate, and that’s going to secure their housing.”
Maplewood Township Committee Member Dean Dafis added, “Housing First is the umbrella principle in all of this. We always focus on getting someone housed first before we provide the other necessary supportive services. Diversion applies upstream to someone who may be facing eviction. We want to get to them before they lose their housing, so we are diverting them away from displacement.”
He continued, “Diversion can also apply downstream after someone has been displaced, but before they enter the shelter system. So we are getting to them to do exactly what you said so well, we relocate them rapidly, finding that new housing, that new apartment, paying the security deposit and safely housing them. That’s diversion.”
Later, Dafis pointed out that what Maplewood is doing is not what’s happening in some other New Jersey towns.
“People should look at this,” said Dafis. “Because in other communities not too far away, they are criminalizing people who are unhoused. They are saying that if you sleep outside, you will be arrested and you will be fined $2,000, which is insane, right? Someone who’s homeless is not going to be able to pay that.”
Dafis noted that Toms River was voting that same night on an ordinance to ban homeless people from sleeping in a municipal parking garage and instituting fines and potential jail time.
“That does not solve the problem,” said Dafis, as he also referenced an executive order by President Donald Trump that is “threatening the funding for programs like this.”
Even in “progressive” Maplewood, Dafis said he hears from constituents who ask him to “get rid” of homeless people on benches.
“I think it’s important for us to keep raising awareness, to keep investing in this program. And as a champion in this space, I’m really proud of our work. We have a lot of things to focus on and do better in, but I’m really, really proud of this and I thank you.”
If you or someone you know is homeless or at risk of homelessness, and would benefit from CSPNJ’s assistance, please contact the CSPNJ at (848) 234-7006.
Find out more about the Maplewood Health Department services here: https://www.maplewoodnj.gov/government/public-health-social-services/
