Well, the night before last was the Point In Time Count for the State of North Carolina. This year for me was a bit more frustrating than usual. The team I was on, didn't count anyone as homeless this year in the street count. We had sites in West Raleigh around the fairgrounds area. It is always challenging when you come across campsites where people are clearly staying, but there is no one there. We can't count those who we can't see. This occurred in three locations, and I'm guessing one of the locations there were at least two people who were camping in that area.
The point in time count is not an accurate count by any stretch of the imagination, yet it is the only thing we have that counts homeless people with any sort of accuracy.
I also find myself really challenged by some of the tactics that are used by some of the local outreach ministries to help homeless people living in the woods. One local group has been known to provide people with car batteries to provide power, camp stoves, etc. I'm a firm believer in making sure people aren't cold and are safe, but this seems to me to be disincitivizing people from coming in out of doors. These folks need permanent places to live under a warm roof, not the comforts of home in a tent.
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3 comments:
Not everyone wants to live indoors, I know it can be hard to accept this but it is true.
I appreciate the intent of Wake Continuum of Care. I never knew about the program until reading about the HUD money today in the News and Observer.
I do believe this is an extremely inefficient use of taxpayers' money. How many gross dollars did it take to send funds to Washington, allow the bureaucracy to skim for the PhDs' take, and send the net dollars back to Wake County?
We would be much better off keeping these dollars at home and being accountable to our local citizens for local problems.
And my guess is there will still be homeless people in Wake County ten years from now if the solution is more federal pork money thrown at the problem.
I agree that if the only solution to ending homelessness is federal money and federal programs being thrown from Washington balconies and additionally dictate how local organizations use their money to solve problems, a solution will surely be slow to come. Fortunately our local citizens are making decisions themselves and making strong commitments to help. The faith community has got to be a key to helping solve the many problems related to homelessness. With more than 1,000 churches in Wake County, surely members of those congregations will continue to unite and help. They have begun to help through the Support Circle program and in other ways, unfortunately some efforts, while well meaning, do perpetuate and enable homelessness and most of those on the streets if given opportunity would prefer to live in a more stable environment than under a tree, under a building alcove or in a car. We must expand opportunities to move people more quickly off the streets into housing that is affordable to them. Increasing the affordable housing supply will be difficult to keep pace for those who need most likely rental subsidies to be used in affordable housing and apartments with the support they need to regain stability will be the most direct way to help. In the mean time trying to count people in the woods, but not being able to count those who perhaps are there, but aren't there, is likely a waste of time until a more efficient and effective program is developed.
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