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PIT count: Fewer homeless are here

by BILL BULEY
Staff Writer | August 10, 2022 1:07 AM

COEUR d’ALENE — The line was short for the free dinners at Father Bill's Kitchen Tuesday evening.

So when the doors opened just before 5:30 p.m., it wasn't long before everyone who had been waiting was walking away with a to-go container.

Two men chatted as they stood on the sidewalk and ate the ham and potato meal.

One said he just found a place to park his motor home so he won't have to continually move it.

"It's pretty rough being homeless," he said.

The other man nodded.

"I'm good. I've got a place to live," he said.

Both men declined to give their names to The Press but said they are seeing more homeless on the streets.

"A whole lot more because rent is so high, you can't afford it," one man said.

Their views differed from the most recent Point-in-Time Count that found the homeless population in Region 1's North Idaho counties declined in the past year.

At 143, it was down from 173 in 2019, 198 in 2020 and 148 in 2021. This year, that included 51% who said they were homeless for the first time.

Donna Brundage, with St. Vincent de Paul North Idaho community outreach, is also chair of the Region 1 Point-in-Time Count Committee.

She said there were a number of factors, including COVID, that influenced the outcome of the one-day count held the night of Jan. 26.

“It can get a bit tricky,” she said in a phone interview with The Press.

“It’s hard to get an accurate depiction of how many homeless there are in our region,” she said.

For instance, the Point-in-Time, or PIT, count does not include persons who may be staying with friends or relatives, in a hotel or motel, in a treatment facility, or who are in jail.

The volunteer counters are instructed to count adults and children who, on the night of the count, reside in a vehicle, temporary tents, encampments, and warming centers.

Statewide, the 2022 homeless count was 1,378, up from 1,314 last year, but down from 1,668 in 2020, according to the count, funded by the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development

Nearly half said they were homeless because they were unable to find affordable housing, which coincides with the dramatic rise in housing costs in North Idaho in the past year.

“People coming in with money has driven the price of housing up,” she said. “Wages are not keeping up with the cost of living.”

Nearly a quarter said being homeless was due to unemployment, while almost 20% cited eviction because they were unable to pay their rent.

The primary goal of the PIT Count is to provide a snapshot of the number of homeless persons living on the streets, "other places not meant for habitation," or residing in emergency shelters or homeless transitional housing projects.

In 2022, 52 veterans were among the persons included in the PIT count — a 15% increase from 2021.

"We’ve been seeing a lot more veterans come through our doors,” Brundage said.

Brundage said mental health issues are a primary reason people are homeless and that is exacerbated by a shortage of mental health services available to them.

And some simply refuse offers of help.

“A number of homeless people don’t want to participate in treatment service,” she said.

Brundage said some of the homeless may also have left North Idaho for Spokane, where shelters are less restrictive but less safe.

The homeless are not easily identified. They tend to stick to certain places and follow set routines. Some might pick up breakfast at a ministry, lunch at a church, and dinner at Father Bill's Kitchen operated by St. Vincent de Paul North Idaho.

“There is situational homelessness and professional homelessness," Brundage said.

Kevin Kram, director of Cherished Ones Ministries that provides free dinners for people on Saturday nights, said they are seeing far fewer homeless.

“We are running very low numbers,” she said.

A year ago, about 70 people would be there for the dinners. Recently, it’s been 30 to 35.

Kram said it’s hard to say why. He cited a lack of free transportation to reach the free dinner, increased police contact and more leaving for Spokane, as possible reasons for the decline.

Brundage said St. Vincent's is helping more people who are homeless, and more who could be because of rising rents.

St. Vincent's is finding that people facing homelessness don’t know where to turn for help.

“The people at risk for homelessness has definitely gone up,” Brundage said. "We’ve definitely seen a spike in that.”

She believes homelessness isn’t increasing in Region 1 because programs designed to help them — such as job training, career counseling and supportive housing — are working.

“The numbers should be down,” she said.

But Brundage said she did not want to portray a “false sense of security" that the homeless are leaving North Idaho.

They are here and they are facing great difficulties.

“It’s rough,” she said. “ It’s brutal right now.”