Loading
Print VersionStay Informed
Unsheltered Homeless Exceeds Sheltered in ND

City of Grand Forks News Release - 11/14/2012

Contact: Michael Carbone, Exec. Dir. ND Homeless Coalition, 701-390-1635

A study conducted by the North Dakota Coalition for Homeless People, shows the number of people in North Dakota experiencing homelessness who are unable to access shelter, has exceeded the number of homeless people in the state’s system of emergency shelters. On July 27, 2011, the number of unsheltered was 966 and the state’s emergency shelters were at full capacity with 807 people.

The energy boom is drawing in people from across the country and creating a severe housing shortage in western North Dakota that is spilling over into other parts of the state. “Service providers are getting calls on a daily basis from people around the country, wanting to access shelter in North Dakota while they try to find employment,” said Michael Carbone, Director of the ND Homeless Coalition.

The full study, which is scheduled to be released late next week, contains a count of sheltered and unsheltered people who are homeless, an inventory of beds designated for those who are homeless, interviews with 168 service providers across North Dakota, an assessment of bed needs and supportive services, and policy recommendations. The service provider interviews include emergency shelters, transitional housing, social services, Public Housing Authorities, Community Action and Salvation Army, as well as mental health, chemical dependency and domestic violence providers.

The policy recommendations include:
· Renewal of the Housing Incentive Fund with set asides for supportive housing.
· Increased availability of supportive services (to be paired with the supportive housing) through the Department of Human Services.
· Establishment of a state funded homeless prevention and rapid re-housing program similar to MN’s Family Homeless Prevention and Assistance Program and utilizing best practices established in the federal Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-housing Program.
· Replication of Fargo/Moorhead’s church sheltering program, throughout ND. Faith groups worked together to shelter overflow from the FM area’s homeless shelters with training and support from the local homeless coalition. This could be a way to provide shelter without necessarily building new shelters.
· Development of emergency shelter with the expectation that emergency shelter needs will diminish over time and facilities could eventually be repurposed for supportive housing or other uses. Funding for operations should be included.
· Increased support for nonprofit capacity building including both strategic planning and service delivery.
· A reassessment of the state’s ten year plan to end long term homelessness.
· Increased partnership between federal, state, local and private entities.
· Homeless providers should adopt a vulnerability index to more effectively triage homeless households

The 2012 Project Connect will hold its opening ceremony at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, November 15 at Hope Covenant Church at the Grand Cities Mall. Project Connect is a one-day, one-stop local event, targeting people who are homeless, or at risk of becoming homeless. Carbone will hold a news conference at 9:00 a.m. immediately prior to the Project Connect launch.

More News and Events...