Transcript Document

Chicago’s Plan to End Homelessness
A Briefing for the Harris School of Public Policy
Presented by:
John W. Pfeiffer, MPA
First Deputy Commissioner
Chicago Department of Family and Support Services
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On any given night, 6,300 people experience homelessness
in Chicago (5,060 sheltered, 1,219 unsheltered, Jan. 2013).
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23% of Chicagoans live below the poverty line.
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Chicago’s poverty rate has risen 14% in the last decade.
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There is a shortage of 180,000 affordable rental units in
Cook County.
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A person would have to earn $18.42 an hour to afford a
two-bedroom apartment.
Inadequate supply of
affordable housing
Impact of foreclosure crisis
on multifamily buildings
Loss of SRO housing stock
Erosion of mental
health services
Inadequate substance abuse
treatment resources
Rising poverty and extreme
poverty (>50% FPL)
High unemployment and
underemployment
Low wages & part-time
jobs without benefits
Minimal discharge
planning from prisons
Federal funding cutbacks
and sequestration
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Annual investment of over $125 million to support a
continuum of services benefiting including:
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Homelessness Prevention
Outreach and Engagement
Overnight Shelter
Interim Housing
Rapid Rehousing
Community-Based Case Management
Public Benefits Assistance & Advocacy
Employment, Substance Use & Mental Health Services
Transitional Housing
Permanent Supportive Housing
Permanent Housing with Short-Term Support
Age-Appropriate Housing for Youth
Safe Haven (MISA)
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Chicago’s 2014-2018 Five Year Housing Plan
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Chicago Low-Income Housing Trust Fund
• The nation’s largest municipal rental subsidy program
• 2,700 homeless dedicated units
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Interagency Permanent Supportive Housing Group
• DHED, DFSS, CHA and Corporation for Supportive Housing meet
monthly to:
1. Review pipeline of supportive housing deals
2. Coordinate funding for development, rent subsidies and services
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Plan 2.0 is a broad-ranging, seven-year action plan that
reaffirms and builds on the strategies outlined in Chicago’s
original 2003 Plan:
1. Homeless Prevention
2. Housing First
3. Wraparound Services
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Over 500 stakeholders participated in the eight-month
planning process, including 150 people who have
experienced themselves.
1.
The Crisis Response System
2.
Access to Stable and Affordable
Housing
3.
Youth Homelessness
4.
Employment
5.
Advocacy and Civic Engagement
6.
Cross-Systems Integration
7.
Capacity Building
1.
The Crisis Response System
2.
Access to Stable and Affordable Housing
3.
Youth Homelessness
4.
Employment
5.
Advocacy and Civic Engagement
6.
Cross-Systems Integration
7.
Capacity Building
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Goal: Create an effective crisis response system that
prevents homelessness whenever possible and rapidly
returns people to stable housing.
Key Objectives
◦ Create a coordinate access system for prevention, emergency
shelter, and interim housing by the end of 2013.
◦ Double the prevention and diversion resources for families
and singles from $2.2 million annually to $4.4 million annually
by 2019 to reduce the number of new households
experiencing homelessness.
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Goal: Create and maintain stable and affordable housing
for households who are experiencing or at risk of
homelessness.
Key Objectives
◦ Increase the number of rapid rehousing units from 737 to 2,768 to
meet project need.
◦ Increase the number of permanent supportive housing units from
6,842 to 8,814 to meet project need.
◦ Harness funding from all levels of government to expand affordable
housing options for extremely low-income households in order to
meet the projected need of 3,515 units.
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Goal: Create a comprehensive, developmentally
appropriate menu of services for youth who experience
homelessness in order to prevent homeless youth from
becoming the next generation of homeless adults.
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Key Objective
◦ Triple the capacity of the youth housing system by 2019 from
266 beds to 800 beds.
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Goal: Increase meaningful and sustainable employment
opportunities for people experiencing or most at risk of
homelessness.
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Key Objective
◦ Increase the number of households employed at exit.
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Goal: Engage all of Chicago in a robust plan that creates a
path to securing a home for everyone in our community.
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Key Objectives:
◦ Advocate for additional resources to meet the needs of
people experiencing homelessness.
◦ Increase civic participation and commitment to the goal of
ending homelessness.
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Goal: Work across public and private systems of care to
ensure ending homelessness is a shared priority.
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Key Objectives:
◦ Foster sustained, high-level coordination among government
agencies on the issue of ending homelessness by establishing
a Chicago Interagency Council on Homelessness by the end of
2013.
◦ Ensure rapid assessment and connection to mainstream
resources for all household experiencing or at risk of
homelessness.
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Goal: Ensure a strong homeless assistance system capable
of implementing Plan 2.0 goals and HEARTH Act
performance standards.
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Key Objective
◦ Increase Chicago’s outcome achievements in relation to Plan
2.0 and HEARTH Act performance measures.
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