Study reveals more than 30 percent of homeless in county are children
By Times Press Recorder Staff
a division of Lee Central Coast Newspapers
A single count of homeless persons in San Luis Obispo County has revealed that on any given day, there are more than 3,800 people without a place to call home.
Even more alarming is that of the 3,829 homeless people recently surveyed during an enumeration count of the county’s homeless population, 35.8 percent of those without a permanent place to live are children. Five percent are senior citizens. The findings of the single-day count and 2009 enumeration study also show that the homeless are a diverse group who live in every area of the county.
The highest percentage of homeless persons were in San Luis Obispo — 36 percent — and Paso Robles — 20 percent, according to the study. Most of those individuals have social and family ties in the county — 26 percent of persons surveyed have friends or family in the area and 38 percent of persons surveyed reported that they were born in the county.
However, the study also revealed that 44 percent of the individuals surveyed in the South County slept outside or in a car the previous night, and half of the homeless in the county have been without a place of their own for more than a year. “These numbers really show that the homeless are members of all of our communities who are facing a variety of challenges, namely the economy, unaffordable housing and access to services,” said Dana Lilley, county planning supervisor.
To combat the growing numbers of homeless individuals and those already without shelter, the Homeless Services Coordinating Council recently spearheaded development of a 10-year plan to end homelessness. The aim of the plan is to coordinate the county, its seven cities and the various agencies that provide services to the homeless in an effort to transition people without homes into a functioning life, with homes.
Dee Torres, CAPSLO homeless services director, believes the enumeration study and the survey results are a good first step toward ending homelessness in the county. “The survey results are an important resource for service providers to better understand our clients and the types of programs that will move them closer to a home.” When the county conducted a similar homeless enumeration study and survey in 2006, there were 2,408 homeless persons counted. However, the 2006 study had a smaller volunteer workforce than this year’s project employed, and the previous survey also occurred at a different time of the year, according to the county.
