2013 Central Oregon One Day Homeless Count
For the eighth straight year, the Central Oregon Homeless Leadership Coalition is conducting a one-day count of people who are homeless or in transitional housing in Deschutes, Crook, and Jefferson counties. This count is a part of a national effort to identify the number of people struggling to find appropriate and adequate housing. Throughout the day on Thursday, January 24th, 2013, volunteers will be conducting confidential and anonymous surveys in Bend, LaPine, Sisters, Redmond, Prineville, and Madras. This one-day count will provide the most up-to-date information about the number of individuals in Central Oregon who are struggling to find adequate housing. Through this data, local agencies and programs are able to qualify for increased funding, better target support services, and develop comprehensive plans to address poverty and homelessness in Central Oregon.
Download the official Press Release
Download the Deschutes County Flyer
Download the Sisters Flyer
Download the Crook County Flyer
Download the Jefferson County Flyer
Download the Jefferson County Flyer - Spanish Version
2012 Tri-County Homeless Count Numbers
- Persons Experiencing Homelessness Longer
in Central Oregon
On April 17, 2012 the Homeless Leadership Coalition released the data collected from the annual homeless count, conducted Thursday, January 26, 2012. On this day, 2,132 individuals self-identified as persons experiencing homelessness within the tri-county region. One in two people surveyed identified themselves as having been homeless for greater than one year.
Homelessness continues to take its toll on the community in Central Oregon as the local economy continues to stagnate. Unemployment numbers remain high and foreclosures continue to negatively affect families.
Bob Moore, organizer of the 2012 Count, stated that “It is too unfortunate that many of our friends and neighbors are left without a place to call home. The Homeless Leadership Coalition believes that our community can come together and act intentionally to change this and help solve this issue.” The homeless count provides a snapshot of Central Oregon’s homeless population in a 24-hour time frame. While it is not a comprehensive count, it provides valuable information to those serving the homeless, helps to educate the public about the issues of homelessness in our region, and helps direct public policy planning and development.
Compared to the households surveyed in 2011, service organizations within Deschutes County provided 42 more individuals with emergency shelter, a voucher providing a night’s campground or hotel stay, or transitional housing on January 26, 2012. Only one in ten persons experiencing homelessness in the tri-county region had these resources available to them. Half of the persons experiencing homelessness stated that they would be staying with friends and family the evening of this year’s count. One out of six households experiencing homelessness identified that they were camping, living in a car, or on the street. Central Oregon social service agencies have demonstrated great resolve in implementing proven and effective strategies for ending and preventing homelessness. Unfortunately, the resources available to these agencies are lacking as both federal and state budget cuts demonstrate their impacts on the people in our community.
Two out of five persons experiencing homelessness were under the age of 18. Children under the age of 18 were identified in 43% of the households experiencing homelessness. Brenda Comini, Director of Crook County Commission on Children and Families, referred to this number as being “completely unacceptable”. She went on to say that “all of our children should have access to safe and sanitary housing. Healthy, happy children make for healthy, happy communities.”
The tri-county area has latched onto the commitment made by the Department of Veterans Affairs to end veteran’s homelessness by 2015. It is estimated the Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (HUD-VASH) program, a partnership between the Department of Veterans Affairs and Housing Works (Central Oregon’s Regional Housing Authority) has either prevented or ended homelessness for over 70 individuals in the Central Oregon region over the last 12 months. Although this program has had a tremendous impact, the influx of veterans returning from active duty has caused the number of those experiencing homelessness to remain fairly level. 2
While the overall number of persons and households experiencing homelessness decreased this year, vulnerable persons experiencing homelessness continued to rise. Three out of ten persons experiencing homelessness identified that they were disabled, a significant increase from years prior. Karren Ruesing, Supervisor with Aging and People with Disabilities, stated “We are definitely seeing an increasing need along with a lack of available resources for folks with disabilities. This is a problem that we must address swiftly with the proven solutions available to us.”
Click here to download the official press release
About the One Day Homeless Count
For the seventh straight year, the Central Oregon Homeless Leadership Coalition conducted a one-day count of people who are homeless or in transitional housing in Deschutes, Crook, and Jefferson counties. This count is a part of a national effort to identify the number of people struggling to find appropriate and adequate housing.
Throughout the day on Thursday, January 26th, 2012 volunteers conducted confidential and anonymous surveys in Bend, LaPine, Sisters, Redmond, Prineville, and Madras. This one-day count will provide the most up-to-date information about the number of individuals in Central Oregon who are struggling to find adequate housing. Through this data, local agencies and programs are able to qualify for increased funding, better target support services, and develop comprehensive plans to address poverty and homelessness in Central Oregon.
Individuals and families counted through this effort include people living in:
- Weekly motels
- Shelters
- Transitional housing
- "Doubled up" with other families
- Camping or sleeping in cars
- Other places not designed for long-term human habitation.
For additional information about the impact of homelessness in Central Oregon, please visit the Homeless Leadership Coalition’s web site at www.cohomeless.org/. This site will provide the most up-to-date details about the location of command centers, contact numbers, and additional information about the count.
To learn more about efforts in Jefferson County, contact Ana Young at: anay@neighborimpact.org.
To learn more about efforts in Crook County, contact Karole Stockton at: karoles@crestviewcabale.com
To learn more about efforts in Deschutes County, contact Janet Merrell at: janetm@neighborimpact.org
Media Coordinator: Kenny LaPoint
Contact info: (c) (541) 848-1667 (w) (541) 323-7419 klapoint@housing-works.org
Click here for the 2011 Homeless Count Data
Click here for the 2010 Homeless Count Data
Click here for the 2009 Homeless Count Data
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