Chesco homeless rates down

WEST CHESTER » Chester County government’s collaborative strategy to prevent and end homelessness may be paying dividends, as an annual survey had found fewer residents without permanent, safe, and healthy places to live, according to a news release.

The county’s “Point-In-Time County, conducted in January, identified 555 people experiencing homelessness this year, said a report compiled by the county’s Department of Community Development (DCD) and the Decade to Doorways partnership, which oversees the public and private effort to reduce the homeless population in the county.

This represents a decrease from the past three years. Full details of the report will be presented at the county’s Decade to Doorways Partnership meeting next month.

The “Point-in-Time Count” is a national effort mandated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to determine the number of people experiencing homelessness.

This includes individuals and families who are residing in emergency shelters and transitional living facilities, as well as unsheltered individuals on the street or in places not meant for sleeping.

Within the county, annual count is one component of understanding homelessness, and part of the proactive strategy in “Decade to Doorways: The Community’s Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness in Chester County.” The county has participated in the “Point-in-Time Count” for more than 10 years.

Of the 555 individuals experiencing homelessness on the evening of Jan. 25, 542 men, women, and children were housed in emergency or transitional shelters. Of the 542 that were housed, 213 were veterans. The street count found 13 individuals who were unsheltered (sleeping in cars, tents or places not meant for human habitation). A majority of those individuals were found in West Chester, the county seat.

This year’s count shows a decrease in homelessness for three consecutive years. In 2016, 682 individuals were counted, and in 2017 the number was 570.

Lauren Campbell, Decade to Doorways administrator, said the decline in numbers this year can be attributed to several different factors.

“These include an increase in resources like Rapid Re-Housing, more programs that focus on keeping people housed once they exit homelessness, and an emphasis on assuring that the most scarce resources like permanent supportive housing or vouchers go to those that are the most vulnerable, so that they don’t end up homeless again,” she said in the county’s release.

“The collaboration of our homeless service providers is also very significant,” added Campbell. “We have a great group of agencies that tirelessly work together to house our neighbors in need.”

The Decade to Doorways Partnership meeting, which will include a detailed presentation on the “Point-inTime Count” and a new Decade to Doorways Operational Plan, will be held from 9-10:30 a.m. on Thursday, April 5, in the cafeteria of the county’s Government Services Center, 601 Westtown Road in West Goshen. The public is encouraged to attend.

For additional information on the 2018 count, the Decade to Doorways Partnership, and homelessness in the county contact Gene Suski, DCD community Services Manager, at 610-344-6900 or go to the Decade to Doorways website at www.decadetodoorways.org.