A strong proponent of Housing First, Erickson echoes Van Leeuwen's enthusiasm about strides being made through cities' implementation of strategic plans. "If you set goals for yourself, you're more likely to get somewhere," Erickson says.
Her city's 10-year plan benefited from a hefty dose of funding early on for rental assistance; the vacancy rate for inexpensive rentals rivals that of Manhattan these days, she said. Only 20 years ago, a livable apartment could be had in Portland for under $200 in today's dollars.
That same lack in New York is one reason why some homeless advocates are frustrated with the HOPE ritual. The grassroots organization Picture the Homeless, a reliable Bloomberg administration critic, didn't even bother to issue its own statement on HOPE this year. "The whole idea of counting homeless people is not something we think is a priority," lead organizer Sam Miller said. The fact is, too many New Yorkers have no shelter – while numerous properties and buildings sit vacant. Miller's group is focused on turning those into homes for people who need them.
Similarly, Coalition for the Homeless' senior policy analyst Patrick Markee says, "It's not the most useful exercise compared to the real goal of getting the permanent supportive housing they truly need." And it's supportive housing and other permanent solutions – not transitional (albeit better then traditional shelter) responses like "Safe Havens" – that really meet the Housing First definition, he and others attest.
As the vice president for housing operations at Housing Works, the nonprofit housing and service group for people with HIV/AIDS, Ken Robinson sees the situation from several perspectives. Not only does he lead an aggressive advocacy organization, he also serves as a co-chair of the Coalition on the Continuum of Care, which coordinates matters related to the distribution of more than $80 million from HUD (which is why the one-night surveys are done in the first place). Robinson said he understands the controversy over HOPE – though his own beef is only that it's held overnight in the dead of winter.
Getting to the real question of whether Housing Works' front-line staffers, who aid street homeless people with substance abuse problems, are seeing more or fewer people lately, Robinson points to an enduring reality. "There's always been more than they can handle."
