Austin city leaders have approved a new strategic plan to address some of the issues people experiencing homelessness face.<\/p>\n
David Gray, the city\u2019s homeless strategy officer, said it will act as a road map for addressing homelessness over the next two years. The plan was crafted with more than two dozen community partners and includes adding shelter beds to the system, opening two centers that help coordinate services and increasing collaboration with community partners. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf we want to get people out of our abandoned buildings and out of parks and greenbelts, we need more beds to put them in, and we need more spaces to bring those people inside,” Gray said. \u201cAnd that is exactly why our plan touches on adding more shelter beds, enhancing rapid rehousing and permanent supportive housing service delivery and boosting our navigation centers.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tony Carter said those are the kinds of services that could help get him and keep him in housing. Since 2019, Carter has been in and out of homeless camps and rapid rehousing all while trying to hold down a job. Rapid rehousing provides the person with a rent subsidy and case management services as they work to become self-sufficient. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf they are going to keep kicking us out [of our camps], we need housing,\u201d Carter said. \u201cBecause you are kicking people out that don\u2019t have a place to go. We need the resources, we need permanent supportive housing, and we need a place where we can go get help.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gray said some of those goals are already underway. The city is working to open a new navigation center, which would help match people with services, in South Austin. The city purchased the property<\/a> back in October. And several permanent supportive housing units are already set to be opened<\/a>.<\/p>\n Carter said having a place to sleep and access to resources aren’t the only needs. He said it’s important to have the right people running these facilities so that people come in feeling safe and welcomed.<\/p>\n \u201cA lot of people will go to the shelter but they aren\u2019t going to stay,\u201d he said. \u201cBecause the employees don\u2019t know how to treat the people, the facilities aren\u2019t cleaned [properly] and people’s stuff gets stolen.\u201d<\/p>\n People living in the shelters have also complained about a lack of nutritious food<\/a>.<\/p>\n The city’s plan wants to address those concerns by establishing standards at shelters, including staff training and service expectations.<\/p>\n