San Antonio – The city’s Homeless Strategic Plan is beginning to take shape as the contractor hired by the city nears a pivotal phase in the process.
Since arriving in November, the three-member team from Homebase, a California-based nonprofit, has been gathering information to help develop an overarching plan for the next five to 10 years. Homebase deputy director Patrick Wigmore says that has consisted of looking at data and conducting numerous interviews and meetings.
“Part of that is the community meetings that we’re hosting this week, but then also meeting with providers, state hospitals, criminal justice, all of the different intersections that this population meets with,” Wigmore said.
Volunteers come together to count San Antonio’s homeless population
The community meetings on Monday and Tuesday night will mark the end of most of Homebase’s information gathering as Wigmore and his team begin preparing their recommendations, which they will present to the City Council in early April.
Wigmore said themes emerged in their research, including the idea of better coordination between services.
“So ideas for how to institutionalize a lot of the relationships and build in warm hands-off (sic) for individuals as they move through the system so that we can have good outcomes,” he said.
Wigmore said San Antonio has been getting good outcomes from its services, but there’s a growing demand for them.
“So you have -- certainly have -- individuals who are experiencing homelessness,” Wigmore said. “They go through the programs that are operating, they have successful outcomes and then there is a whole other group of individuals behind them. And this is a nationwide issue that communities are struggling with.”
There is already $560,000 available in the city’s fiscal 2020 budget to be put toward the plan Homebase presents.
“So in regards to carrying out this plan, I mean, we’re very serious about this, which is why we invested in it,” said Morjoriee White, the city’s homeless administrator.
San Antonio to host public forums on homeless strategic plan
If you are interested in providing your opinion on the issue of homelessness in San Antonio, the final two public forums take place between 6 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. on these dates:
Monday, Feb. 10
Palo Alto College/Ozuna Library (Legacy Ballroom, Room 101)
1400 W. Villaret, 78224
Tuesday, Feb. 11
Elvira Cisneros Senior Community Center
517 S.W. Military Drive, 78221