Permanent housing for homeless during this winter

The Washington Post has reported that a total of 185 units (a mix between apartments and single rooms) will be available for the District's homeless during the upcoming winter:

"The plan approved by the Interagency Council on Homelessness, a coalition of D.C. agencies and nonprofit groups, lists 185 units that will be used for families when emergency shelters are full. Some advocates for the homeless say they are worried that number will be insufficient, but D.C. officials say it's a better use of city money to put people in more permanent housing instead of temporary shelters."

Under D.C. law, the city must provide emergency shelter to homeless people during the coldest months, from Nov. 1 to March 31. This marks an effort by the government to help the homeless and follow the Housing First Initiative (in which the homeless individual's first and primary need is permanent housing (instead of temporary shelters) and that all other issues/ problems can and should be solved after the individual is given this housing). While there may be some concern that this initiative is moving too quickly and that there's a lack of experience in administering this type of program, Be the Change in DC is happy to hear about the goverment taking action to help the homeless. An earlier version of the plan proposed adding 100 units to the Family Emergency Shelter at the former D.C. General Hospital but was rejected because adding beds would cause even more crowding. This final plan appears to offer more units and at least a path to more permanent housing.

We hope the execution of such housing initiatives goes as smoothly as they are intended and we know firsthand that when someone is suffering in the bitter cold, you sometimes have to act first and think later. We also hope this means that fewer homeless people need the sleeping bags we distribute during the winter but regardless, we are gearing up to give out sleeping bags in December, January and February.