For Immediate Release: 7/3/2018 12:27 pm
City Manager Edward M. Augustus Jr. will host a media briefing to report on the recommendations of the Task Force for Sustaining Housing First Solutions on Wednesday, July 11 at 1 p.m. at City Hall in the Levi Lincoln Chamber.
From March-June 2018, the 28-member Task Force undertook an in-depth examination of Worcester’s community needs and resources in addressing adult chronic homelessness. Three committees were tasked with the gathering of specific information regarding data, affordable housing, outreach and case management, and public input was sought throughout.
The Task Force Leadership Team will attend the briefing and provide an overview of its 26 specific recommendations with actions necessary to sustain Housing First Solutions. “Housing First” targets persons experiencing chronic homelessness, living in shelters or places not meant for human habitation.
The recommendations address the five components of Housing First: Crisis Response; Housing Supply and Rental Assistance; Support Services; Housing Stabilization; and Data-Driven Decision-Making.
The Health Foundation of Central Massachusetts provided $25,000 to support the work of the Task Force, including the contracting of consultant Barbara Poppe, former Executive Director of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH) and a nationally recognized expert on results-driven public-private partnerships to address homelessness.
For more information on the Task Force, please visit www.worcesterma.gov/hhs/housing-first.
