(Photo courtesy of Ministry with Community)
Five years ago, several agencies in Kalamazoo County launched a ten year plan to end homelessness. At the half way point, there have been some success stories. But a coalition of groups working on affordable housing estimates that about 800 people in Kalamazoo don’t have a place to stay every night. Nearly 30% of them are children. And it’s likely that surveys are not finding all of the homeless. In the final report in a three-part series, WMUK’s Gordon Evans report on what may lie ahead in the effort to end homelessness in Kalamazoo County:
(Sound of lunch at Ministry with Community)
Ministry with Community is a day time shelter in Kalamazoo. Meals are served, while a volunteer plays piano. There are also laundry facilities and a place just to get warm. Among those at Ministry with Community on this day is Anthony Lamont Turner. Turner says he made in his words “bad choices.” Those were fed by a drinking problem. Turner says he spent some time in prison, and has been homeless ever since he was released.
(Anthony Lamont Turner: “It’s real, real hard, starting from up and living comfortable to nothin’ to trying to get back at least half way, at least half way. It won’t go all the way. But at least have a starting chance”)
But getting back half-way is not easy. Before he went to prison, Turner says he worked as a cook, and would love to find a job like that again:
(Anthony Lamont Turner: Like I said it’s a struggle. Especially when you have no transportation, you’ve got to walk to jobs, and getting the right clothing to look presentable. It’s just a struggle”)
Kalamazoo Poverty Reduction Initiative Director Jeff Brown says while being in poverty leads to homelessness, being without a home makes it very difficult to get out of poverty. And Brown says there is a cost to society:
(Jeff Brown: “But it really kind of starts mortgaging our future. Because we’re talking about two or three kids that are living in that kind environment. And how in the world do we expect them to go to school and be successful, take advantage of the Kalamazoo Promise if they live within the KPS district, or even be able to even consider that if they live in other very challenged districts that we have in the county, without some kind of home or some kind of stability in their life”)
Kalamazoo County’s Local Housing Assistance Fund which has provided money for vouchers that have allowed people to stay in their homes or move out of shelters into housing is running out of money. One idea to replenish that fund is a county wide millage. The Kalamazoo County Board of Commissioners considered a proposal earlier this year, but did not put it on the ballot. County Housing Commission Chairman David Anderson says the original proposal would have raised two-point-seven million dollars. But Anderson says that was probably too large and he expects a smaller millage proposal to be presented to the County Commission:
(David Anderson: “I think that a request half, or less than half could still have a significant effect. It’s orientation would be partnership with our entire non-profit group of organizations in town trying to augment other dwindling resources and really trying to continue to focus on leveraging what we have here”)
A survey by Battle Creek consulting firm W.J. Schroer Company conducted earlier this year found support in the community. That survey was commissioned by the HOMES coalition, which includes 15 non-profit groups seeking more funding for the Local Housing Assistance Fund. David Artley works for Kalamazoo County as director of Resource Development. He’s also spent many hours volunteering on the housing issue with the county Housing Commission. He says about 70% of the people responding to the survey said they could support a housing millage:
(David Artley: “I think it has potential. You’ve got a survey that says at a point in time 71% thought it had potential. But that’s up to the County Board. That’s their call to make. And I respect that”)
Artley says that support was conditioned on some way of measuring success. He says there are already requirements for people to receive assistance from the fund, including writing a plan explaining how they intend to avoid going back to homelessness. But Artley says the county board has many other issues besides housing to consider. Those include law enforcement, transportation and health.
Kalamazoo faces many of the same issues as other cities. Housing Resources Incorporated Director Ellen Kissinger-Rothi says some money from foundations in the area and approval from the Department of Housing and Urban Development has allowed Kalamazoo to host a number of pilot projects to examine best practices:
(Ellen Kissinger-Rothi: “And so I think we’re coming up with some of those models, we’re not just saying, ‘oh we’re powerless here.’ We’re saying ‘we’ve got to figure out a new way to do this, we’re capable of figuring it out, and maybe we can shine some light on what the rest of the country needs to be looking at as well.’”)
Kissinger-Rothi says some creative thinking is needed. She says homelessness is a complex issue, related to the economy, education and other factors. And solutions are still being sought five years into a ten year plan to end homelessness.
