Officials said an accurate count of the homeless population in Fort Bend County is an elusive figure. However, student enrollment data from area school districts and service utilization numbers from nonprofits paint a picture of homelessness in the county. ISSUE OF HOMELESSNESS Number of homeless students Percent of population that is homeless
Nine local organizations collabo- rated on the housing solution for Fort Bend County, and full cooperation will be needed from all parties to fully uti- lize county funding, Johnson said. She said Fort Bend Family Promise hopes the funding will target three areas: diversion housing, resource match- ing and Project BUS—which stands for “bridging us to services.” “We want to make sure that we can connect people with resources they might not know about,” Johnson said. “We brought to the table ‘Project BUS’— bridging us to services—which is work- ing with transportation that would run a route throughout the county that would stop off at various nonprofits and would make it to the project that we hope to build.” In all, the program incorporates emergency shelter; transitional hous- ing; supervised independent living for youth aging out of foster care; and supportive, permanent housing for individuals with major behavioral or health needs. “This project includes case manage- ment, workforce development, educa- tion support—all of those things are so vitally important, and we need to make sure that we are getting to the root of each family’s challenges and their cri- ses,” said Shannan Stavinoha, execu- tive director for Parks Youth Ranch. It also would supply affordable rental housing structured as multifam- ily housing, where residents would not spend more than 30% of their pretax income on housing, as well as afford- able homeownership—which would include homebuyer education and down payment assistance programs. Precinct 4 Commissioner Dexter McCoy applauded the groups’ efforts to encompass homeownership into its programming but said he would not support removing federal funding from other initiatives. “We have been let down by the state
Fort Bend County nonprofits provide resources for those experiencing or at risk of homelessness, but a shortage of housing options remains. SHOWING NEED
FORT BEND ISD
2.5%
2K
1.5K
clients in Park Youth Ranch, which provides at-risk youth with shelter and supportive services 51 a Katy-area nonprofit that provides food, showers, transportation and advocacy 210 families annually use Abigail’s Place services, which houses single mothers and their families 120 active participants at Hope Impacts,
families using the county’s rental and utility assistance program, which is federally funded through a one-time allotment and ended March 30 900 shelter requests at Fort Bend Women’s Center in 2022, which serves survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault 1,148
1.4% 1.3%
1.1%
1K
1%
500
0
SCHOOL YEAR
*NOTE: SCHOOL DISTRICTS ATTRIBUTED THE HIGH NUMBER OF HOMELESS STUDENTS IN THE 2017-18 SCHOOL YEAR TO HURRICANE HARVEY.
SOURCES: ABIGAIL’S PLACE, FORT BEND COUNTY, PARKS YOUTH RANCH, FORT BEND ISD/COMMUNITY IMPACT
remaining balance in the American Rescue Plan Act funding pot. However, County Judge KP George was eager to dedicate the resources and said the county has a “once-in-a- lifetime chance” to address the issue of homelessness. “These [groups] mentioned here, they are all waiting for our move. They are saying, ‘OK, you’re lecturing about poverty, then put some money where your mouth is,’” he said. There were 14,120 households in Fort Bend County vulnerable to becoming homeless because they only earn up to 30% of the county’s area median income, according to a homeless-needs inventory and gap analysis the county drafted in late February. It also found that due to a rental shortage in the county, housing options
for people at risk of homelessness are few. The analysis identified emergency shelters as first priority for homeless individuals and families. Vera Johnson, executive director for Fort Bend Family Promise, said the program has been needed for a while. “This project has been a long time coming,” she said. “But we’re confident that we’ll be able to do a great deal of good for our Fort Bend residents.” Emergent need Currently there are only two emer- gency shelters within the county— exclusively for at-risk youth or women. Data from Fort Bend ISD showed homelessness may be an issue for the county’s youth as well. In the district, there were a reported 935 homeless students in the 2021-22 school year.
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duplexes and a centralized resource center as well as hire staff to help homeless individuals. On Feb. 14, the court approved the transfer of $2 million to its Emergency Rental Assistance budget for the pur- pose of this program. The nonprofits aim to use the rest of the requested funds as a down payment to kick-start the program, they said, and hope to use future Community Development Block Grant funding for the remaining $40 million. During the Feb. 28 meeting, Precinct 1 Commissioner Vincent Morales said there was a need for a pro- gram like the one proposed but urged the court to take more time to work with the budget office to flesh out the
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