Sixty-eight Kitsap County residents are currently homeless.
Not a particularly alarming number – except that it only represents those age 5 and under. Throw in the rest of the age groups and the number of displaced residents currently sits at 715, according to a just-completed survey by the Block Grant Division of the Kitsap County Department of Administrative Services.
The survey was conducted in late January as part of the state’s “10 Year Plan to End Homelessness,” and volunteers from local social service agencies and their umbrella organization, the Continuum of Care, canvassed the county over a 24-hour period.
The numbers reveal a “big city” problem across our suburban county, including this island.
About one-third of Kitsap homeless suffer mental health issues, the survey found, while a like number live in the throes of drug or alcohol dependency. One-third are slowed by physical or medical disabilities, while more than 40 have developmental challenges – something to remember the next time you hear someone say that folks are on the street because they’re lazy or want to be there.
Some 84 individuals surveyed are living in emergency shelters, while 266 are “couch surfing” with family or friends until their prospects improve or they wear out their welcome.
At the other end of the spectrum, nearly 80 are living outdoors in alleyways or tents – in January, this – and nearly as many are living in cars or abandoned buildings.
The problems that put them on the street? Those run the predictable gamut of domestic violence; family break-ups; not enough money to pay the rent or mortgage; lack of job skills; recently discharged from a jail or other institution with nowhere to go; and that most contemporary of economic ills, a poor credit rating.
Sixty-six homeless families with children were identified, two of them living with no shelter whatsoever. More than 100 of those surveyed had been homeless for more than a year.
“Obviously, those numbers are higher than what the general public would think there was,” said Terry Schroeder, the Continuum’s coordinator. “Those who have worked in it are not surprised by those numbers, but it’s certainly distressing. I know from talking to persons who are homeless, the biggest obstacle is being able to find affordable housing. That is just not getting any better.”
Meanwhile, at the federal level, funding for the Department of Housing and Urban Development – money that’s passed along to local housing agencies to build, buy and manage affordable units – has suffered significant cutbacks in recent years, making it harder still to meet the housing need.
If you’re calling for “change” in the upcoming presidential election, that’s an issue you might want to get behind.
Seven hundred and 15 homeless people out of a county population of what, 200,000? That may not seem so bad, unless you’re one of the 715.
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Clarification
• Congressman Jay Inslee’s office says its spokesperson Christine Clapp misspoke last week, when she told the Review that “superdelegate” Inslee is undecided as to which presidential nominee he will support. A letter from Inslee clarifying his position appears on page A5 today.
