On January 30, 2013, the City of Redding/Shasta County Homeless Continuum of Care Council (CoC) will participate in a Nation-Wide annual “Point In Time Count” of homeless individuals and families throughout Shasta County. In addition, we will host a Veteran’s Housing Resource Fair at the Redding Vets Hall from 10am to 3pm. The one-day census on homelessness offers Congress information about homelessness in our area, which justifies our federal funding needs.
Numerous agencies and service providers will administer surveys in their programs, on the streets and in homeless camps. Participation will occur in all corners of the county including Burney, Shingletown, Redding, Anderson and Cottonwood. Additionally the CoC will facilitate a focused effort to identify our homeless Veterans in Shasta County. This will include improvements to methods used in identifying Veterans, and a downtown Redding Veteran’s Housing Resource Fair that will draw in Veteran’s experiencing housing challenges.
Due to the number of variables that affect the One-Day Point-In-Time count from year to year, local providers also rely on a “Year Round” homeless census voluntarily administered by People of Progress. The Year-Round totals vary at a relatively steady pace each year, as opposed to the spikes and drops of the Point In Time count. The Year-Round survey, although it’s not federally recognized, appears to offer us a much more accurate reflection of our local homeless condition.
-from press release
