R2005-158 PLACING ON FILE FINAL REPORT

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FIVE YEAR SUPPORTIVE HOUSING PLAN II FINAL REPORT I Contemporary research indicates that, for most of the chronicaily homeless population, immediate placement in permanent supportive housing is more effective than ; moving in three stages: from the streets into emergency shelters, from emergency �� shelters to transitional housing, and finally from transitional housing into permanent '�, supportive housing. The approach of immediate placement in permanent supportive ��, housing is called "Housing First", and it is rapidly becoming the nationally preferred approach to ending chronic homelessness. For a minority of chronically homeless people, emergency shelter and transitional housing provide a needed bridge to final placement in permanent supportive housing. Decatur's emergency shelters have 88 beds, of which 53 are available to single individuals. However, many of the chronically homeless have been banned from shelters due to their mental illnesses and/or substance abuse. More recently, the Decatur Cares Rescue Ministry has accommodated persons with behavioral disorders to the extent that it can do so without negatively impacting other residents. Decatur has 40 units of transitional housing, all overseen by Dove's Homeward Bound ro ram. Of these units, 10 are for individuals, and of those 6 are currentl occu ied b P 9 , Y p Y persons who are chronically homefess. While these emergency shelter beds and transitional housing units meet temporary needs for many people, they do not provide permanent housing. Permanent Supportive Housing. The Decatur area has three sources of permanent supportive housing for families and individuals: • Shelter Plus Care (S+C) projects operated by the Decatur Housing Authority under contract with HUD. HUD's S+C program is similar to its Housing Choice Vaucher ("Section 8") program; it provides rental subsidies so tenants pay no more than 30% of their adjusted gross income for housing. Under S+C, rental PAGE ZO