Here's how other cities are doing in the fight against homelessness. What will need to happen for King County to have such dramatic results?
New York: April 5, 2006—ONE-NIGHT SURVEY SHOWS 13% DECREASE IN CITY’S HOMELESS “The number of people living on the streets of New York City decreased by 13% from last year, according to an estimate released yesterday by the Department of Homeless Services.” –The New York Times
Denver: May 9, 2006—SURVEY: 11% DECLINE IN DENVER HOMELESS: MAYOR’S ‘ROAD HOME’ PLAN APPEARS A FACTOR IN BETTER NUMBERS, INCLUDING DROP IN STREET NUMBERS Crediting Denver’s ambitious plan to end homelessness, Denver city and county partners announced the release of a 2006 survey showing an 11 percent decline in people without homes. Volunteers counted 661 people sleeping on the street that night, compared with 1,000 in last year’s survey. –Rocky Mountain News
Boston: April 17, 2006—N.H. GETS ENCOURAGING NUMBERS ON HOMELESSNESS “Not counting Manchester, whose count was not yet available, the number of homeless people counted during a one-day census in January was 1,826, down 130, or 7%, from the January 2005 census.” –The Boston Globe
Dallas: April 10, 2006—DALLAS HOMELESS NUMBERS FALL 3.3%; CHRONIC HOMELESSNESS DOWN 26% “The number of people sleeping in homeless shelters and on the streets in Dallas County decreased 3.3% from a year ago, to 5,704, according to a new count being released today…the drop was much sharper for longtime homeless people with mental or physical disabilities, who are considered chronically homeless. That number fell 26%, to 733, according to the annual count by the Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance and the City of Dallas.” –The Dallas Morning News
San Francisco: February 15, 2005—SAN FRANCISCO HOMELESS COUNT SHOWS SHARP DROP “The 41% decrease in the number of people counted—from more than 4,500 to 2,655—was due to a number of factors…The working total altogether now stands at 5,642, or 28% fewer than the 8,640 total in 2002.” –The Examiner
Miami: April 20, 2006—MIAMI HOMELESS POPULATION DOWN BY 39% The number of people in Miami experiencing homelessness has dropped by 39%, according to Mayor Manny Diaz, in his annual State of the City address. Miami has also seen a 30% decrease in its street population. –The Miami Herald
Chicago: July 8, 2005—CHICAGO SAYS PLAN TO HELP HOMELESS IS WORKING “As of the end of June, 1,400 emergency and transitional shelter beds have been eliminated in Chicago and more than 1,000 permanent housing units were created, according to the report issued by the City. Another 945 beds were turned into rapid re-housing, a program designed to get the homeless into permanent residences within 120 days.” –Chicago Tribune
Philadelphia: October 18, 2005—CAN WE END HOMELESSNESS IN 10 YEARS? “Philadelphia became a national model for helping the so-called ‘hard core’ homeless. In 1997, there were 824 homeless people living on the streets of Center City. Now there are about 350.” –Philadelphia Daily News
Portland: January 12, 2006—600 CHRONICALLY HOMELESS PEOPLE ARE OFF THE STREETS THANKS TO PORTLAND CITY, COUNTY EFFORTS “Portland has moved 600 chronically homeless people into permanent housing in the first year of the 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness, city and county officials announced today. This is more than three times the plan’s original goal, which called for permanently housing 175 chronically homeless people by the end of 2005.” --City of Portland
Source: United States Interagency Council on Homelessness Results in Ending Chronic Homelessness, National Media Summary
