Hayward's Homeless Count Drops 21% as City Claims Countywide Leadership

Hayward's City Council convened May 19 for a meeting that spotlighted the city's strongest homelessness results in years, celebrated a 16-year environmental compliance milestone, and heard the opening salvos of what promises to be a bruising fight over business license taxes. The session also featured Ava Community Energy's first-ever impact report and a Heritage Month proclamation that doubled as a call for greater civic representation.

• Hayward's homeless population fell 21% in two years, outpacing Alameda County's 13% decline, as the mayor claimed countywide leadership on the issue

• Chamber of Commerce and SEIU 1021 staked opposing positions on a proposed business license tax increase of more than three times the current rate

• City achieved zero-trash-discharge compliance after a 16-year, 629-device stormwater installation program

• Ava Community Energy reported $8.6 million in cumulative customer savings for Hayward's 55,000 accounts while flagging a cautious approach to data center energy demands

• AANHPI Heritage Month proclamation sparked calls for more Asian American representation on elected bodies in a city that is over 30% AANHPI

Why it matters: The Alameda County point-in-time count — the biennial census that shapes federal and state funding formulas — showed Hayward's homeless population dropped from 512 people in January 2024 to 404 in January 2026. That 21% decline nearly doubles the countywide average of 13%, and the share of homeless individuals who are sheltered has climbed from 21% in 2017 to 46% in 2026.