Politics & Government
Homelessness Down In Chester County, But Still High: Study
Homelessness is down in Chester County, according to the most recent studies, but only slightly. And the number remains quite high.
A new study has estimated the total number of homeless individuals in Chester County, and there is both good and bad news.
The good news is that the total number of homeless individuals in the county has been reduced from last year.
The bad news is that the total number of estimated homeless individuals - 555 - is still quite high.
Find out what's happening in Phoenixvillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
The study was executed by the Chester County Department of Community Development and then analyzed by Decade to Doorways (DCD), an organization dedicated to preventing and ending homelessness in the county. Officials hope that the study, part of a national effort spearheaded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, can help shape local plans to get homeless residents housed.
The number of 555 homeless individuals is down from 682 in 2016, but is only a very small decrease from 570 in 2017. In 2015, the count was 615.
Find out what's happening in Phoenixvillefor free with the latest updates from Patch.
In order to count the total number of homeless individuals, police, libraries, nonprofits, and food cupboards, along with other personnel, helped identify known sleeping locations of homeless individuals - both on the streets and in dedicated shelters. The count of 555 was made on the night of Jan. 25, from 1 a.m. to 4 a.m., DCD said.
The same methods were used to count homeless individuals at around the same time of year in previous years.
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The count of "unsheltered" homeless individuals was at 13, and included four in West Chester, two in Kennett Square, two in Exton, two in Downingtown, two in Parkesburg, and one in Oxford. The "sheltered" count included shelters and housing paid for by government organizations or nonprofits; the remaining 542 individuals slept here on that night. The bulk of them were either in temporary housing for veterans (213) or emergency shelters (181).
Around 70 percent of those individuals were male.
For the full 2018 report, see here.
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