Columbus is facing a growing problem of homelessness. It’s up to the community to find ways to help people who fall into homelessness, but a first step is trying to identify and address immediate needs.
One of the first things our community should do is try to determine with some accuracy how many people are homeless or at risk of homelessness. That’s not be as easy as it sounds for a host of reasons.
As The Republic’s Andy East reported, the anecdotal evidence suggests a growing number of people lack basic shelter. He reported that Brighter Days, which normally sees about 12 to 15 people seeking shelter each night during the summer, has seen something altogether different this season.
“We’re just seeing an influx of more homeless,” Kelly Daugherty, executive director of Love Chapel, which operates Brighter Days, told East. “… This summer, we’ve been running 25 to 27 (people) every day.”
The cost of housing is higher than ever, and substance abuse and mental health issues likely are to blame for some of the increase.
But the truth is, just as we don’t know how many people are homeless in our community or how many might be at risk of homelessness, we also don’t know the causes or have a systemic plan to help.
And because so few places exist to help, some homeless people seek daytime shelter in public places such as The Commons or the Bartholomew County Public Library. Both of those institutions have recently considered rule changes because they are seeing more homeless people sheltering there in the daytime.
We also seem to be seeing more homeless people simply living with their possessions on the streets. But this, too, is anecdotal.
The city is undertaking its first housing study in more than a decade, and establishing a count of the unhoused in our community must be part of that, along with coming up with strategies to increase the supply of affordable housing.
As Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop told East, even the term “homeless” can apply to different groups of people, but the federal government generally considers the term to mean a person without a permanent living arrangement or fixed place of residence.
Accepting that definition gives us a starting point for a dialog. And we encourage constructive collaboration around the homelessness issue involving stakeholders from the public sector, the private sector, faith and nonprofit organizations and concerned residents.
These ought to be the two questions that drive our community’s conversation regarding homelessness:
- How many people in our community meet that definition?
- What can we do to help?
To be clear, there is no universal solution to homelessness. Every person who is unhoused is an individual, and every individual’s experiences, needs and wishes vary. That said, winter is on the way, and Brighter Days and other providers have cause for concern about shelter as the numbers rise.
We encourage everyone in the community who might have ideas and suggestions to express them or get involved with helping organizations. Recent headlines suggest there are more people in dire need in our community than we realize. And what is the definition of community if not caring about those in need?
