Austin’s Homeless Strategy Office is proposing a funding package totaling just under $101 million for homelessness response efforts in the city’s next budget, with about one-third allocated toward maintaining existing programs, one-third for new city investments, and one-third for initiatives expected to be funded by partner organizations. The spending plan laid out in a presentation […]
Austin City Council Public Health Committee
Formerly known as the Health and Human Services Committee, this Council subgroup oversees things such as “social services, education, public health, health care services, animal welfare, sustainable food, social equity, veterans’ affairs, populations at risk, and related matters,” according to the city website.
Posted inPublic Health
Council gets early look at public health cuts caused by federal funding losses
Austin Public Health leaders are working to manage an ongoing budget crisis caused by federal funding cuts that have destabilized programs across the city. City Council’s Public Health Committee heard last week that APH has already lost approximately $15 million in federal grants, with further reductions anticipated in the months ahead. APH Director Adrienne Sturrup […]
Posted inHousing
City needs up to eight permanent supportive housing projects per year to solve homeless housing
The city’s housing staff members acknowledge a need to accelerate the pace of new permanent supportive housing projects in the coming years to meet the long-term goal of 5,000 additional units over the next decade to address the long-term needs of people experiencing homelessness. At its latest meeting, City Council’s Public Health Committee reviewed the […]
Posted inEnvironment
Public health commissioners eye heat resistance steps for city budget requests
Public health proponents for the city and Travis County appear ready to push for more heat mitigation resources in the next city budget, with a recent playbook from the Office of Resilience likely to help prioritize those financial requests. At last week’s meeting of the Austin/Travis County Public Health Commission, members heard a presentation about […]
Posted inCity Council
Council to see requests for Marshalling Yard extension, ECHO’s $350M homelessness plan
The Public Health Committee has recommended adopting the Ending Community Homelessness Coalition (ECHO) long-term forecast for addressing homelessness, signaling a commitment to spend an estimated $350 million over the next decade to fill gaps in the city’s homelessness response system. The recommendation asks City Council to direct the city manager to seek out additional funding […]
Posted inCity Council
ECHO’s $350M plan offers to ‘effectively end’ homelessness in Austin
The city is projected to need $35 million annually over a 10-year period to effectively end homelessness via a plan that emphasizes adding hundreds of permanent supportive housing units while also addressing emergency shelter and prevention steps to keep people from losing their homes. City Council’s Public Health Committee met on Wednesday and received a […]
Posted inPublic Health
Homeless Strategy Office turns its focus to prevention and diversion
With a $2.1 million boost from the federal American Rescue Plan Act and City Council’s recent approval of a contract for navigation services, the Homeless Strategy Office is now better equipped to address housing barriers, HSO leader David Gray told the Public Health Committee Wednesday. Gray briefed the Council committee on his department’s updated strategic […]
Posted inCity Council
Council wants changes to rapid rehousing for homeless ahead of federal aid cutoff
The city will look for ways to improve and possibly restructure assistance programs for those at risk of losing their homes, in anticipation of the end of federal aid used to address homelessness. Last week, City Council approved a resolution following a recommendation from the Public Health Committee and the Housing and Planning Committee to […]
Posted inCity Council
Public Health Committee weighs Marshalling Yard complaints, McKinsey homelessness study
Members of Vocal-TX, a grassroots organization that represents low-income people directly impacted by homelessness, and other Austin residents raised concerns about City Council’s handling of homelessness at the Public Health Committee meeting on Wednesday. Their concerns centered on Marshalling Yard, the city’s new temporary emergency homeless shelter, and a recently approved $2 million contract with […]
Posted inPublic Health
ECHO says permanent supportive housing is the only way out of Austin’s homelessness crisis
Austin’s Ending Community Homelessness Coalition joined City Council’s Public Health Committee this month to break down the nonprofit’s latest point-in-time count, which in late January found 2,374 Austinites experiencing some degree of homelessness. While that figure is down from 2020, Executive Director Matt Mollica said it will take years of sustained effort to truly address […]
Posted inHousing
Salvation Army’s handling of downtown shelter closure draws Council criticism
The Salvation Army’s handling of the closure of its downtown shelter was the target of criticism at City Council’s Public Health Committee meeting on Wednesday. Critiques came from Mayor Kirk Watson, members of City Council, and clients of the shelter who find themselves in limbo as a result of the announcement. The Salvation Army, which […]
Posted inPlanning
City, Central Health eye partnership for homeless respite care facility
The city may soon begin talks with Central Health and homelessness service providers focused on creating a permanent health care facility to aid those experiencing homelessness in recovering from significant illnesses and injuries. The state of respite care for the homeless was the only agenda item for last week’s meeting of the Public Health Committee, […]