Taking an approach that is both obvious and novel, government officials hope to solve homelessness in Salt Lake with permanent housing instead of long-term shelters that help keep it chronic.
The "housing-first" idea turns the traditional method of sheltering homeless people on its head, members of the Salt Lake County Long Range Planning Committee told the Deseret Morning News editorial board Wednesday. Modeled after successful programs in New York and Philadelphia, obtaining permanent housing would be the initial focus before treatment is offered for any mental health or substance abuse problems that could be contributing factors in the lives of the nearly 1,500 homeless individuals in the county.
"It's a real sea change in how we would really like to solve this problem," said committee chairman and former Salt Lake City mayor Palmer DePaulis.
The county initiative is similar to the state's 10-year plan to address the statewide chronically homeless population. Through both plans, officials are trying to secure affordable housing for participants by working with existing property owners and developers of new properties.
Once very visible, the issue of homelessness has largely disappeared from public view, DePaulis said. But the problem still exists and needs to be brought to the forefront and addressed.
"We're actually trying to bring this issue back on the table for communities to look at this, and look at this seriously," he said.
To that end, the committee has scheduled two public hearings to discuss the plan with community members and address any concerns they might have. The first hearing is scheduled Aug. 18 at 4 p.m. at the Salt Lake City Library; the second is Aug. 25 at 5:30 p.m., South Jordan City Hall, 10615 S. 1600 West. National studies show that a housing-first approach is less expensive than traditional shelter programs, said Kerry Steadman, Salt Lake County homeless services coordinator. Although the chronically homeless make up only 12 percent of the total homeless population, they consume 57 percent of the resources.
Chronic homelessness is defined as an individual who is homeless for more than one year or four times over a three-year period.
By getting the 1,454 people who have stayed at the Road Home for more than six months in the past five years — many of them for three years or more — into homes of their own, the shelter will be able to dedicate more time and resources to other clients, said director Matt Minkevitch.
That population, about 10,000 people between July 2000 and March 2005 whose stays lasted fewer than six months, is much more common than those with more long-term needs, Minkevitch said.
"They need us once, they need us for a short period of time and they move on their way," he said.
Unlike some housing-first programs, the committee's 10-year plan assures services even if an individual won't accept permanent housing.
"Services, I think, are absolutely responsible as to how you build the confidence of a neighborhood," DePaulis said.
Residents may be initially wary of accepting members of the homeless population into their area, but DePaulis said that attitude generally changes as they see participants succeed under the program.
"All the worries and concerns seem to fade away and they begin to embrace" their new neighbors, DePaulis said.
Building community support for the program will be vital, committee members said Wednesday, as is helping Utah citizens realize that — aside from some major life setbacks — the homeless are no different than the rest of the population.
="We have to make the people of our society understand that they are people," Midvale mayor JoAnn Seghini said. "They are not 'those' people. They are 'our' people."
E-mail: awelling@desnews.com