Lisa Warhuus, Berkeley’s head of health, housing and community services (HHCS), is leaving her role next month for a position in Marin County.
Warhuus and former Health Officer Dr. Lisa Hernandez, who left the city last summer, were central in guiding Berkeley’s COVID-19 response. Warhuus took on the position in March 2020 and currently oversees the work of interim health director Dr. Anju Goel.
She will leave Berkeley on Feb. 1 and begin her new position as Health and Human Services Director for Marin County on Feb. 20, managing a staff about eight times as large as Berkeley’s with about double the budget, according to the Marin Independent Journal. “I really wanted the opportunity to work at a larger scale,” she told the newspaper.
In Berkeley, Warhuus managed public health response, as well as homeless services and affordable housing. She pushed for an equity-based pandemic response, driving neighborhood-based vaccine distributions, innoculations at People’s Park and church clinics. She was also involved in the creation of the Specialized Care Unit for non-police crisis response.
“Going forward, it will be important for Berkeley to prioritize health equity as we continue to see disparities between Black, indigenous, and people of color when compared with the white community,” Warhuus told Berkeleyside via email. She said she was not available for an interview this week.
She wrote that many of the equity strategies put in place during the pandemic could be expanded to address “a whole range of health and wellness needs that our community is facing.”
Warhuus’ departure, like Hernandez’s, comes amid a citywide staffing shortage affecting multiple departments, including HHCS.
City spokesperson Matthai Chakko said there isn’t yet an open job posting for a director of health, housing and community services, but the city will announce a “transition plan” in the coming weeks. Warhuus made $335,156 in total pay and benefits, according to the Transparent California database, with base pay at $225,664. She’ll make $288,433 with benefits at Marin County, according to the Journal.
“It has been an honor and a privilege to serve in the community that I grew up in,” Warhuus wrote in a statement. “I joined the City of Berkeley in March 2020, a challenging time for sure, but we worked as a team to navigate through the pandemic, reimagine public safety, create more affordable housing, and serve our most vulnerable community members. I will always remember this time as one where we came together to do great things.”
