Stanislaus homeless survey seeks insights on causes, barriers to being sheltered
Packing questionnaires and comfort kits, nearly 300 people canvassed Stanislaus County on Thursday to conduct the annual point-in-time count of the homeless. The trained survey takers were a mix of resident volunteers and employees of the county, its cities and various nonprofits.
The unsheltered homeless (those in shelters were surveyed Wednesday) were asked for demographic information including their age, income if any, veteran status, household size, the reasons they became homeless, and in what city or county they first were homeless. They were asked if they’ve been to jail or juvenile hall, or in foster care or a treatment center. The survey sheet inquires about any disabling condition that impedes a person from performing basic functions: PTSD, developmental disabilities, addiction, severe mental health issues or chronic physical illness.
As thanks for participating, the homeless were given the comfort kits, which are drawstring backpacks containing hats, gloves, scarves, socks, water and granola bars.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development requires what are called continuums of care to conduct these tallies as part of applying for HUD homeless funding. The local continuum, called Stanislaus Community System of Care, and its predecessor, the Stanislaus County Housing and Support Services Collaborative, have conducted these counts since 2005.
The collected data helps improve delivery of resources and services, said Kyle DeJesus, housing and supportive services manager with the Stanislaus County Community Services Agency.
“Some of the questions are a little bit more personal, like we asked them if they are experiencing homelessness because they are fleeing domestic violence,” DeJesus said.
“Some of the newer questions that we added on are when was the last time you had contact with a family member? Also, have you ever been denied shelter services before? And if so, what were the reasons? Sometimes the individual might be denied shelter because they couldn’t take their pets or the shelter wouldn’t take their partners, or they had a lot of possessions that they weren’t able to take with them.”
Aside from the few additional questions, there really was nothing new this year, which is intentional, said Maryn Pitt, a system of care board member and one of the count organizers. The county is in the second year of a plan and a consistent implementation strategy on how the count is organized and mapped and how counters are deployed, said Pitt, who’s also the assistant to the Turlock city manager for housing and economic development.
With the consistency and improved collaboration among all the players, there won’t be big swings in the homeless population that were found in counts “in the more distant past,” she said. “Last year was a jump, but I think that had to do with a much better organized count.”
The 2019 survey results show 1,923 people were counted, up from 1,356 in 2018. From last year’s count, 1,795 questionnaires were collected from emergency shelters, transitional housing programs and street count locations.
Pitt noted that it’s been more than a year, too, since a federal court ruling that it is cruel and unusual punishment to prosecute people for sleeping in parks and other public property when they don’t have a choice because there are no available beds in a shelter. The ruling was in a lawsuit involving Boise, Idaho, but applies to several Western states, including California.
“So people aren’t hiding, at least from what we see,” Pitt said. “... There’s nothing illegal about them camping, for the most part, so we see much more visible homeless camps with tents and those kind of things in all the communities.”
This story was originally published January 23, 2020 at 2:35 PM.
