Permanent supportive housing initiative

This Permanent Supportive Housing Initiative was passed by City Council in 2010 prioritizing affordable housing funds to the construction of  350 permanent supportive housing (PSH) units for Austin’s most at-risk homeless population.  As of 2013, their intended residents occupy 206 PSH units, and an additional 137 units are anticipated to be available for occupation by the end of 2014.  With 343 PSH units completed and occupied, Austin will be only seven units short of achieving the goals set forth in the 2010 resolution [1].

Austin's 100 homes campaign

Serving as Austin’s contribution to the nation’s “100,000 Homes Campaign”, city volunteers are seeking to identify and classify Austin’s homeless population according to a vulnerability assessment.  Through a series of interview questions, volunteers establish a ranking of the most at-risk homeless people, and then moves forward to assist them with securing permanent affordable housing.  The program works based off a “Housing First” theory that by first and foremost providing stable and safe housing, individuals will be better situated to next face medical or substance abuse problems, and later move onto greater self-sufficiency overall with the help of social outreach programs [2}.

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Community first! village

Expected to open for occupancy in 2015, Austin’s Community First! Village is a project spearheaded by a Christian group called Mobile Loaves & Fishes.  The Village is a 27-acre master planned community of refurbished RV homes, mobile homes, and “tiny houses” designed in partnership with architecture students from the University of Texas, Austin.  The community, anticipated to house 200 currently homeless Austin residents, is intended to be largely self-sufficient. Included are plans for a staffed medical facility, a food-producing garden, a place of worship, recreation and entertainment facilities, and various workshops, which will provide both employment opportunities for residents as well as meet the needs of the community in general.  The goal is to uplift the homeless in Austin by first providing a stable home, which will pave the way for attaining further self-reliance [3]. 

 

Sources:

[1] "Permanent Supportive Housing Initiative." Neighborhood Housing & Community Development. City of Austin.                               http://www.austintexas.gov/department/permanent-supportive-housing-initiative
[2] "100 Homes Campaign Community Briefing".  Ending Community Homelessness Coalition (ECHO). 
      http://austinecho.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Community-Briefing-.pdf    
[3] "Community First! Village". Mobile Loaves & Fishes.  
      http://mlf.org/pave-the-way-home/ - community-first