Homeless shelter program seeing mixed results AUSTIN More than one year since its launch, Austin’s Housing-focused Encampment Assis- tance Link, or HEAL, program has brought hundreds of people off the streets and toward potential housing, but the outcomes for those individuals have been mixed. after encampment move-outs, after a slow start she attributed to HEAL’s initial rollout. Since HEAL began in June 2021, the average shelter-to-housing timeline was just under six months. Accounting only for the time since last October, the process averaged 3.5 months. BY BEN THOMPSON
POLICE LICENSE PLATE READERS City Council approved reactivating a service that uses devices mounted in police cars to scan and identify license plates and store the data. SOURCES: AUSTIN POLICE DEPARTMENT, CITY OF AUSTIN/ COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
PHOTO COURTESY APD
18 police vehicles already equipped with readers to reactivate the program $114,775
However, city data showed nearly half of those who exited shelter ended up returning to homelessness while 44% moved on to housing. Grey said that trend was due in part to how long the program’s service and housing con- nections initially took. She also said the totals will likely shift in a more positive direction as clients in the city’s two shelters, which are at or near capacity, secure housing.
As of this summer, HEAL has cleared 10 public encampments and relocated more than 360 people into temporary shelter for connection to housing services. Through August, nearly 30% had moved into perma- nent housing. Homeless Strategy Officer Dianna Grey also said the program is reducing the amount of time its clients spend waiting for housing
Council OKs police license plate readers amid privacy concerns
BY BEN THOMPSON
AUSTIN Police can once again use automated license plate readers, following a 7-4 City Council vote Sept. 15. District 6 Council Member Mackenzie Kelly has pushed for the police data tracking program’s return this year, at a cost of nearly $115,000, after it was shut down in 2020. Kelly and several law enforcement groups including APD said the program can help police respond to crimes such as kidnappings and auto thefts. Other residents and council members, most vocally District 4’s Chito Vela, opposed the program given concerns related to expanded police powers and potential privacy and civil liberties infringements.
HEADING TOWARD HOUSING Austin has moved hundreds of people into shelter and housing since June 2021 through August 2022.
10 encampments decommissioned
361 people moved into shelter
182 people enrolled in housing services
108 people moved into housing
118 returned to homelessness
and
SOURCE: CITY OF AUSTIN/ COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
Average time from shelter entry to housing move-in: 173 DAYS
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