INDIANAPOLIS – New data from The Coalition for Homelessness Intervention and Prevention showed that Indy’s homeless population is on the rise.
The 2017 results from CHIP’s annual Indianapolis homeless Point-in-Time (PIT) count found the amount of people homeless in the city increased by 10 percent – giving the city the highest homeless count since 2014. Currently, 1,787 people are without homes, according to CHIP.
On Wednesday, Mayor Joe Hogsett pledged to provide permanent housing for 400 homeless individuals during his State of the City address.
"But today I'm challenging our city and committing this administration to provide permanent housing for homeless residents" #StateofIndy
— Mayor Joe Hogsett (@IndyMayorJoe) April 19, 2017
CHIP officials said the PIT count is designed to give only an average of the number of homeless people in the city.
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Data includes those in emergency shelters, transitional housing, and safe havens within a single night. It does not include those found outside of shelters.
In 2016 CHIP used another method to count Indy’s homeless population, and data revealed the count was more than 12,000 – significantly larger than the PIT data.
“We know providing housing is one of the most important tools to increase the success rate of someone experiencing homelessness. Ninety-three percent of those re-housed remain housed one year later, and 94 percent of those that receive homeless prevention do not fall into homelessness over the coming year,” said Alan Witchey, executive director of the Coalition for Homeless Intervention and Prevention or CHIP. “The statistics clearly illustrate the high skill level of those addressing the issue, but resources lag behind the need. We applaud the City of Indianapolis for committing to provide ‘permanent’ housing for 400 homeless residents to address this increase.”
CHIP officials said to end Indy’s homeless problem, the city would need to create more than 2,000 supportive housing options a year.
