North Central Austin Edition | October 2023

BY BEN THOMPSON

addressing public encampments, those involved said many clearings are followed by the unhoused indi- viduals returning to a nearby area without anywhere else to go. Long waitlists and referral issues remain as barriers to temporary shelters, while many permanent housing spaces have yet to open. Jose Cruz, who’s been homeless for about six years, said he’s given up on finding a housing solution through city systems after years of trying; he’s now hoping to find help from community members. Cruz said he doesn’t believe what he views as a backed-up housing process can work without more support for clients along the way as he’s seen many people be housed and then return to the streets. “They don’t have an actual plan that will ensure that the homeless people are not going to leave the apartment as they’ve been doing,” he said. What’s next Many said the goal of adding supportive housing can free up shel- ter beds as clients transition from temporary to permanent spaces. The first of more than a dozen new supportive housing facilities includes a few city-owned hotels that are being revamped for new tenants and could begin opening late this year or in early 2024. Many of the projects will be brand-new construction, and altogether, the additions will expand Austin’s supportive housing network by more than six times. Mollica said a key area of improve- ment can be the use of tenant-based tools, such as vouchers, to address the housing shortfall in private apartments as well. However, hundreds of people who’ve already secured their vouchers are still struggling to get housed. “That part of the strategy needs to be fine-tuned and reworked and needs to be better, quite frankly,” he said. “We have some areas of improvement; there’s no doubt about it.”

homelessness services are scattered throughout the city and remain difficult for clients to navigate. Mark Hilbelink, executive director of South Austin’s Sunrise Homeless Navigation Center, said the city prioritizing shelter or housing outcomes alone, while important, means other community needs aren’t met. He said more resources are needed on the “front end” of homelessness work, such as day centers offering walk-up services, which could also produce better data on Austin’s homeless population and its needs. Emergency shelters in Austin served a total of 2,601 people in fiscal year 2020-21 and more than 2,900 people in FY 2021-22, but data for the most recent fiscal year is still being collected. Between 173 and 238 people have moved into permanent supportive housing each year since 2017, according to ECHO and the city, which keeps tabs on housing and shelter statistics. The breakdown In the next year, the city will spend $17 million of its dedicated funds to combat homelessness for the development of supportive housing and related services. Addi- tionally, $9 million will be used for shorter-term housing or vouchers for tenants. Stakeholders agreed homelessness solutions aren’t cheap or simple. Still, the high and increasing cost of services draws some criticism, including recent calls from com- munity members and officials for a closer look at spending. “I think we ought to be doing [spending reviews] on a routine basis on anything that has this kind of expenditure, this kind of expo- sure and this kind of passion behind it just to make sure we’re doing it right,” Watson said. A focus exclusively on the price of homelessness services also illustrates the challenge of balanc- ing needs that often outpace the available resources. As millions of dollars are spent

System shortfall

Austin has ramped up its sheltering efforts over the past few months, but the city still projects a wide gap between available beds and those in need over the coming years.

Key:

100 beds

Across Austin, just over 1,000 shelter beds exist for all populations, including women, youth and immigrants.

Of those, about 541 are available for single adults, the largest share of those experiencing homelessness in Austin.

The city projects 1,428beds for single adults will be needed by 2026, leaving an 887-bed gap for that population. At least 115 are in the works.

SOURCES: CITY OF AUSTIN, ENDING COMMUNITY HOMELESSNESS COALITION/COMMUNITY IMPACT

Housing pipeline

Adding more supportive housing is among the most expensive and time-consuming pieces of how local governments and nonprofits are addressing homelessness. Hundreds of units are planned or under development around Austin.

New construction

Hotel conversions

Already completed

45 TOLL

Pugerville

WELLS BRANCHWAY PKWY.

183

130 TOLL

Austin

PECAN GARDENS 78 UNITS • 2024 OPENING

E. PARMER LN.

183

MOPAC

Austin

290

360

3177

E. MARTIN LUTHER KING JR BLVD.

W. CESAR CHAVEZ ST.

183

S. LAMAR BLVD.

130 TOLL

290

SOURCE: ENDING COMMUNITY HOMELESSNESS COALITION/COMMUNITY IMPACT

NORTH CENTRAL AUSTIN EDITION