As part of the new monthly series on the state of housing in the community, today’s blog consists of two primary components: a high-level summary of the latest data and trends on housing instability, homelessness, and affordable housing; and a curated list of relevant housing-related news and research from the month prior. Together, these items are intended to keep all stakeholders in the community informed about both the challenges and the solutions related to addressing the problems of housing instability and homelessness.
On behalf of Mecklenburg County and the Charlotte Mecklenburg Housing and Homelessness Strategy (CMHHS), I am pleased to share the news that we have created an Enduring Structure with the United Way of Central Carolinas (UWCC) as the local non-profit lead agency. We are thrilled that the United Way of Central Carolinas has agreed to step into this role and provide their unique expertise as we create a structure that will codify this work. This is the next step in this community-driven process, as recommended and described by the CMHHS A Home for All Strategic Framework. This update will provide an overview of the Enduring Structure, including what it is and what it will do, and ultimately, what it means for all of Mecklenburg County.
Paid off eviction debt. Paid off utility debt. Set a workable budget. Stuck to my budget! Negotiated better pay at work. Cut expenses. Started saving. Added to savings. Did all I was supposed to do to be ready to secure permanent housing. Why am I not finding a place I can afford to live? Staff heard this lament over and over again from housing participants of our Women In Transition and Families Together programs at YWCA Central Carolinas. The challenge grew more difficult year after year. We shared their frustration: How can we deliver on the promise of safe, affordable housing for the individuals and families we serve when demand far exceeds supply and what supply exists is reducing rapidly? The purpose of this post is to share information about how YWCA has wrestled with this question, and how we are seeking to answer it. Finally, we will share what we believe this can mean for the work to end and prevent homelessness in Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
Last week’s blog mentioned some “ch-ch-ch-ch-changes” coming to the Building Bridges blog post, including the impending arrival of two new anchor posts. Today’s blog marks the release of the first of the two: the new “State of Housing” monthly update for Charlotte-Mecklenburg. With a new look and format, this monthly update consists of two components: a high-level summary of the latest data and trends on housing instability, homelessness, and affordable housing; and a curated list of relevant housing-related news and research from the previous month. Together, these items are intended to keep all stakeholders in the community informed about both the challenges and solutions related to addressing the problems of housing instability and homelessness. This week’s blog post describes the current state of housing in Charlotte-Mecklenburg, and what this means for the community.
“Strange fascination, fascinating me / Ah, changes are taking / The pace I’m going through.” These are lyrics from David Bowie’s song, “Changes,” which was originally released on the 1971 Hunky Dory album. Becoming one of his most popular songs of all time, pieces and parts of “Changes” have also appeared in films; been studied in classrooms; and used in all kinds of settings to represent (and unpack) the meaty concept of change. In fact, the song has also been used by those who have studied Bowie, deemed the “chameleon of rock” as a “manifesto of his entire career.” Out of context, this song is all about change; and it has come to mean (and give) different things to different people. But, put into historical context, the meaning is given even more weight: the album in which “Changes” was released came at a time when Bowie was reinventing his artistic identity, in which those fascinations were setting the pace for what was to come, and which, ultimately, would define his career. Similarly, this week’s blog is meant to outline some changes in how we communicate data about housing instability and homelessness, including through the Building Bridges Blog posts; Charlotte-Mecklenburg Housing & Homelessness Dashboard; and the 2022 State of Housing Instability and Homelessness Report. This post provides an overview of those changes, what any of this has to do with David Bowie, and what this can mean for Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
Last week’s blog, “A Home for All Strategic Framework: What’s the Cost? Part 1” explored what goes into calculating the cost to end and prevent homelessness and why coordinated funding alignment is necessary. When the Strategic Framework was released in January 2022, it did not include an itemized list of expenditures nor a big-ticket funding request of any body. This was absolutely intentional. Funding recommendations will ultimately be offered as part of the implementation plan. However, one of the biggest topics of discussion has been, and will continue to be: “What does it cost to end and prevent homelessness?” Other relevant questions include, “Who is/will be on the hook?” “Is this a $50 million problem; a $250 million issue; more?” Is this going to be advanced as a one-time ask?” “What is the annual cost to sustain these efforts?” This week’s blog builds upon the content from last week, sharing examples of what from other communities are expending on similar efforts; and what all of this could mean for Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
Released in January 2022, A Home for All: Charlotte-Mecklenburg’s Strategy to End and Prevent Homelessness – Part 1: Strategic Framework reflects the community’s work during the past year to develop a comprehensive, transformative strategy to address both housing instability and homelessness. As the first document to be released from this effort, the Strategic Framework provides the roadmap for the work ahead. The framework serves to outline the vision and major objectives across each of the following nine areas: prevention; shelter; affordable housing; cross-sector supports; unified policy advocacy; coordinated funding alignment; innovative data and analytics; communications; and long-term strategy. Previous blog posts have plunged into the recommendations of the four “what” workstream recommendations that correspond to a part of the housing continuum in the Strategic Framework: prevention; shelter; affordable housing; and cross-sector supports. The Strategic Framework did not include an itemized list of expenditures nor a big-ticket funding request of any body. This was absolutely deliberate. Funding recommendations will ultimately be offered as part of the implementation plan. Of course, however, one of the biggest topics of discussion has been, and will continue to be: “What does it cost to end and prevent homelessness?” Other relevant questions include, “Who is/will be on the hook?” “Is this a $50 million problem; a $250 million issue; more?” “Is this going to be advanced as a one-time ask?” “What is the annual cost to sustain these efforts?” This week’s blog is the first in a two-part series focused on inquiries like these. To answer, we must first explore what goes into calculating the cost to end and prevent homelessness; why coordinated funding alignment is absolutely necessary; and what other communities are expending on similar efforts. Finally, the two-part blog series will address what all of this could mean for Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
Launched last year, the Housing & Homelessness Continuum Data Update is one part of the continuous improvement program supporting our progress from a focus on the Point-in-Time Count, One Number, and other disparate data sources; to reliance on a more comprehensive and inclusive data set that reflects the full continuum of need, from housing instability to homelessness. The One Number is a monthly census that includes all sheltered, and a portion of unsheltered, homelessness. The One Number has itself been subject to continuous improvement methodologies. However, even with the advances made to enumerating homelessness using the One Number, there remain many households who experience housing instability and homelessness but who are not captured in the data inputs. It is critical to identify the households “in the gap” to both understand the full need for services, and to construct effective solutions to address these needs. This shift is also articulated as a need within the A Home for All Strategic Framework: identifying and closing the remaining gaps in data collection and reporting across the full housing continuum. To that end, this week’s blog will provide the latest updates regarding both housing instability and homelessness for the data sources we currently have; and highlight the areas in which gaps still exist; as well as the work underway to address those gaps. Finally, the blog will share what the latest trends show, and what all of this could mean for Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
Released last month, A Home for All: Charlotte-Mecklenburg’s Strategy to End and Prevent Homelessness – Part 1: Strategic Framework reflects the community’s work during the past year to develop a comprehensive, transformative strategy to address both housing instability and homelessness. As the first document to be released from this effort, the Strategic Framework provides the roadmap for the work ahead. The framework serves to outline the vision and the major objectives across each of the following nine areas: prevention; shelter; affordable housing; cross-sector supports; policy; funding; data; communications; and long-term strategy. While any one area of impact and intervention can help chip away at the gaps, the real work must be done on the sum rather than the parts. At the same time, it is essential that we understand each individual part so that we can best position them to complement each other and function effectively as a system. This week’s blog is the final in a new series that seeks to unpack each of the four impact areas in the Strategic Framework aimed at addressing a part of the housing continuum: prevention; temporary housing; affordable housing; and cross-sector supports. This blog is focused on cross-sector supports, covering what they are, why they are important, what the recommendations in the Strategic Framework entail, and ultimately, what all of this could mean for Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
Last year, the Building Bridges Blog launched a new, monthly data update: the Housing & Homelessness Continuum Data Update, which is intended to be part of our continuous improvement program. The Housing & Homelessness Continuum (HHC) will progress the community from a focus on the Point-in-Time Count, One Number and other disparate data sources to reliance on a more comprehensive and inclusive data set that reflects the full continuum from housing instability to homelessness. The One Number is a monthly census that includes sheltered and a portion of unsheltered homelessness. The One Number has also been subject to continuous improvement methodologies. However, even with the advances made to enumerating homelessness using the One Number, there are still many households who experience housing instability and homelessness and who are not captured in the data inputs. It is critical to identify the households “in the gap” to both understand the full need for services, and to construct effective solutions to address these needs. This approach is also called out as a need in the A Home for All Strategic Framework: identifying and closing the remaining gaps in data collection and reporting across the full housing continuum. To that end, this week’s blog will provide the latest updates regarding both housing instability and homelessness for the data sources we currently have; and highlight the areas in which gaps exist as well as the work underway to address those gaps. Finally, the blog will share what the latest trends show, and what all of this could mean for Charlotte-Mecklenburg.
