New breed of homeless expected - News

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Jan. 13, 2009
Copyright © Las Vegas Review-Journal

New breed of homeless expected

Census might find rise in 'first-timers'

By LYNNETTE CURTIS
LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL

Slideshow

People gather last week in downtown Las Vegas' "homeless corridor."

Ruben Bano moves some of his belongings up the sidewalk on Main Street at Foremaster Lane in downtown Las Vegas' "homeless corridor" last week. With the slumping economy and high unemployment and foreclosure rates, an upcoming count of the valley's homeless might show an increase in the number of people who find themselves homeless for the first time.
Photos by K.M. Cannon.

Those who work with the valley's homeless say an upcoming census probably will reveal an increase in the number of people who have found themselves without a home for the first time in their lives.

And the number of "first-time homeless" could soon rise as those who have managed to get by with temporary help from family and friends begin exhausting those resources.

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"I think there may be a delay before we see the full impact," said Shannon West, regional homeless services coordinator for Clark County. "We'll see people who have doubled up with family and friends start falling into homelessness because of financial and relationship issues."

But West said she doesn't anticipate the county's first homeless count since 2007, scheduled for Jan. 28-29, to show a great overall increase in the homeless population.

That's because outreach workers have focused intensely in recent years on getting "chronic" street people into homes and because, West believes, many people have left town after they couldn't find jobs. Local emergency rental assistance programs, such as that offered by the county, also have helped many avoid outright homelessness, she said.

Chronic homelessness is typically defined as experiencing several bouts of homelessness over a few years or being homeless for a year or more.

"I'm feeling like we're not going to see huge new numbers of street homeless," West said. "But it will be interesting to see how many people are homeless because they lost a job or because of foreclosure."

This month's census will be the county's third count of the local homeless population. The 2007 census found that on any given day, about 11,400 people are homeless in Clark County.

The point-in-time estimates of homelessness include shelter numbers, people counted on the street and those identified through surveys as "the hidden homeless," people living with others because they can't afford their own residences.

Linda Lera-Randle El, director of the Straight From the Streets homeless outreach program, also said it might take a while before the tanking economy and high unemployment result in a large increase in local homelessness.

"It may not hit us for this count, but maybe for the next one," she said. "People are still taking their families in. It's slowly trickling down."

Lera-Randle El said she has been hearing from many people who are terrified about the future.

"People are frightened to death of becoming homeless," she said. "There's more fear and uncertainty than I've ever seen."

The long-time outreach worker also said she has noticed more families on the streets with no place to go. They try to be inconspicuous, she said.

"Families hide because they're afraid their kids will be taken away because of their economic standing," she said.

Kathleen Boutin, founder of Nevada Partnership for Homeless Youth, said the agency has seen the number of homeless young people stopping by its drop-in center on Maryland Parkway double since this time last year.

Increasingly, they are not alone.

"We're seeing more families on the street," Boutin said.

Social service providers use homeless census numbers when applying for federal assistance and other aid to help fight homelessness.

A National Alliance to End Homelessness report released today ranked the percentage of Nevadans who are homeless the highest in the U.S.

The majority of the state's homeless people live in Southern Nevada.

The nonpartisan advocacy group is expected to release its most recent rankings in the next few days.

Applied Survey Research, a California-based nonprofit social research firm that completed the 2007 census and has done similar counts in Los Angeles and Atlanta, will manage this month's $130,000 homeless census.

Count organizers need hundreds of volunteers to help. To volunteer, call 455-5832 or visit www.HelpHopeHome.org.

Contact reporter Lynnette Curtis at lcurtis@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0285.

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Please enter your name Name: Please enter your email Email: Please enter a comment COMMENTS : (word count limit is 300) You have reached the maximum number of words allowed Current Word Count: Note: Comments made by reporters and editors of the Las Vegas Review-Journal are presented with a yellow background. Mad American wrote on January 18, 2009 07:03 PM: Wow ... cop from the streets ... sure shows a lot of compassion. What a small minded JERK. There are so many homeless these days as a result of the economy, unemployment, home foreclosures and things beyond their control. You just want to see the worst so you can bully someone. Hope these folks don't have the misfortune of coming into contact with you and your jack booted ilk. Karma can get you too Bozo. You're not immune. Baba Booey wrote on January 18, 2009 10:27 AM: Why do I have to include the area code when I call Lynette Curtis, but not when I call HelpHopeHome.org? Feed the homeless to the hungry wrote on January 14, 2009 01:13 PM: Why is it the homeless never have any money for food, and yet always manage to buy booze and smokes? How come they can't find jobs and get some sort of assistance, when there are agencies willing to throw money at them? Could it be that there is more to this "epidemic of homelessness" than meets the eye...drug abuse, alcoholism, extensive criminal history, etc? Why is the government spending money to help people who can't and won't help themselves first? TT wrote on January 13, 2009 04:51 PM: Correction to the above agencies' data: of the 25,000 homeless and displaced individuals that I have personally worked with in Nevada over the last 13 years, I just recently had the 35th person FROM NEVADA in my dehomelessing class. Interesting statistic. Before 1999, there wasn't even one. They all seem to come to Vegas from Somewhere Else, USA, without the wherewithal to make it here (in my hometown.) It's tough here, no doubt. The way to really help anyone who becomes homeless here is to teach them "how" to be responsible for becoming independent citizens. The trick is to get them to listen (my forte). And please stop giving them stuff without teaching them how to be citizens, too. It makes changing them much more difficult. One shout out to Mayor Goodman- he prophesied this latest category of homeless over 3 years ago (there are actually 16-archetypes discussed in my book, some created by the programs that were meant to help). The real issue today is the "10-year plan" approach, good idea, but another 16 batches of homeless people can rise up by the time the plan reaches fruition. 3 to 6-month plans. Then you can take some ground. Why allow these people to repeat history any longer than they must? At least a lot of sweet people are trying to help; just don't forget the goal... K G B wrote on January 13, 2009 01:06 PM: Sergio, Dont hide it, Devide it. Please let me know where you buy that stuff. joe m wrote on January 13, 2009 12:44 PM: There didn't used to be ANY homeless people in America, until Franklin opened his big mouth in England and the banks immediately took control over our money. Within a year, the streets were full of homeless. I wonder what the problem could be today...hmmm "Let me issue and control a nation's money and I care not who writes the laws." - Mayer Amschel Rothschild, 1790 Directly from the LV streets wrote on January 13, 2009 12:35 PM: I am a police officer in LV and I deal with these people just about every week. For all of the people out there that really think "most" of these homeless people are just down on their luck you are sadly mistaken. If you take 10 minutes to get inot these peoples lives you will find out that "most" have serious career criminal records that have destroyed their lives by way of "their own" bad decisions in life (robbery, DUI's, drug abuse, rape, etc, etc), which makes for a bad life in the future after a life of crime. You then might find out that most are dope users and chronic alcoholics who can't go 30 minutes without drugs or alcohol. Some of these folks like living a work free life and are nothing more than scourges on the rest of the normal working population. Would you want to live in a tent around human feces, urine, dope users and alcoholics? Not me. Most chooses this life or made their own life's so bad from their bad decisions they have no other options and I am not here to pay for them in any way shape or form. Free Nevada wrote on January 13, 2009 12:34 PM: Can we round up the homeless and get them organized, sorted into categories: People who are already trained, people who can be quickly trained and turned productive in a different field, people who need some light psych rehab and people who are going to be a real burden or are criminals? If we focus our limited Medical, Clinical Psychologists, Community College/Adult High School and Law Enforcement resources in a central location, won't it be cheaper for us? Would some new department within the County be needed that can temporarily re-zone and certify unused (or former) resort facilities for such organization and service of the homeless? By having these folks scattered all over the place and lumping them all into the same category "homeless", the problem can't be managed very well and suffering increases (plus it harms tourism). By the same token, throwing them all into "camps" to be neglected (like Inyo/Kern county did back in the 30s), is not the answer either. 'Sergio', dude, are you trying to say that you are an American-educated satanic Internet entrepreneur of Mexican ancestry who will be moving to a solar powered farm in Mexico after stopping in San Diego? If you can still dial 211 (or if no landline, www.nevada211.org click Get Help and then FindHelp) you can select Mental Healthcare and receive some free/low-cost referral to talk to someone. Where are the Liberals? wrote on January 13, 2009 12:29 PM: Where are the Liberals and Democrats when they are needed? Are they not opening up their Homes and Kitchens? Ken wrote on January 13, 2009 12:00 PM: 'American' -- Sergio is 'Fair and Balanced Fred.' I love that guy. Seriously, he is pure genius. If he is not Fair and Balanced Fred, he is of the same ilk and still a genius. You let your buttons get pushed by someone who is all over the map on his thoughts. Nice! Read All Comments