- How many homeless live on streets? The number jumped 23% this year, By Tasha Tsiaperas, March 21, 2018, Dallas Morning News: “The number of homeless people in Dallas and Collin counties has increased again, up 9 percent from last year, according to data released Wednesday from the annual homeless census. There were 4,140 homeless people counted in the two counties on one night in January, up from 3,789 counted last year. There was also a 23 percent increase in the unsheltered, those who don’t seek housing in shelters and live on the streets…”
- Denver sold bonds to reduce the human and financial costs of homelessness. The results so far are promising., By Jennifer Brown, March 19, 2018, Denver Post: “They found Robert Bischoff by sharing his photo with a Sinclair gas station clerk who often sold him cigarettes. They met Alexander Jacob after sending his mom a letter, even though he almost didn’t respond because he figured it was ‘trash mail.’ The two men and more than 250 more people — all homeless and high-frequency users of jail, detox and emergency departments at taxpayer expense — have been tracked down by Colorado Coalition for the Homeless and Mental Health Center of Denver outreach workers and given apartments through Denver’s social-impact bond program. About two years into the five-year program, researchers have noted a dramatic drop in jail days…”
Tag: Social impact bonds
Supportive Housing Program – Denver, CO
Denver initiative would tap $8.7 million from investors to house the homeless, By Jon Murray, January 12, 2016, Denver Post: “Denver officials on Tuesday will unveil long-awaited details of a novel $8.7 million ‘social impact bond’ contract that would draw on private dollars to house and rehabilitate 250 of its most chronically homeless. In the proposed arrangement, investors providing startup money to the city could earn back as much as $11.7 million — including up to $3 million in bonuses — or they could lose out on full repayment. It all would depend on how well the program keeps participants out of jail, the emergency room, detox and other costly services in the next five years — saving the city millions of dollars a year. Each client would get housing and a case manager along with mental health or drug counseling, if needed…”
Social Innovation Fund
Will private investors help pay for social services? Oregon projects seek to find out, By Amy Wang, March 12, 2015, The Oregonian: “Oregon Health & Science University, two counties and a Portland-based nonprofit will join a national initiative looking into whether it’s feasible to tap private investors to fund some social services. The Oregon project, Pay for Prevention, will focus on preventing children and youth from entering the state’s child welfare and foster care systems…”