DATE: January 23, 2015
MEDIA CONTACT: Michael R. Wright, Administrator
Broward County Homeless Initiative Partnership
PHONE: 954-357-6167
EMAIL: mwright@broward.org
BROWARD COUNTY, FL - The Broward County Homeless Initiative Partnership, in collaboration with the Broward Regional Health Planning Council, Inc., Broward Sheriff's Office, 2-1-1, Nova Southeastern University and Hands on Broward, is ready to begin the collection of data for the 2015 Homeless Point-In-Time (PIT) Count Survey and Zero:2016 Registry Week on Monday night, January 26, through Wednesday, January 28, 2015.
The Zero:2016 Registry is designed to create a registry of homeless and chronically homeless people in Broward County and line up a supply of housing and service resources to help them end their homelessness.
Nearly 200 volunteers stand ready to assist in the Homeless Continuum of Care. Interested persons can still contact Sander Schrantz at Sander@handsonbroward.org for additional information.
According to Michael R. Wright, administrator of the Broward County Homeless Initiative Partnership, the County is charged with counting every homeless person and asking them to complete a survey. The count is used to substantiate need for all federal and state grants. "An accurate count helps the County get needed resources to help persons experiencing homelessness in Broward," Wright said. He added the Broward Zero: 2016 registration will assist in prioritizing chronically homeless persons for placement in HUD CoC Program Permanent Supportive Housing.
The survey is used to provide up-to-date information about the needs of persons experiencing homelessness and is an opportunity for the community to engage in efforts to end homelessness and learn about the Homeless Continuum of Care and Broward Zero:2016 project. The Homeless Continuum of Care is a network or organizations, advocates, residents and businesses that plan programs to implement a full range of emergency, transitional and permanent housing, along with prevention and other services to help alleviate homelessness in Broward County. The County's Zero:2016 goal is to end veteran homelessness by 2015, chronic homeless by 2016, and family and youth homelessness by 2020.
About Homeless Initiative Partnership
The Homeless Initiative Partnership (HIP), a section within the Community Partnerships Division of the Broward County Human Services Department, plans and coordinates services for homeless persons, and se4rves as liaison to the Homeless Initiative Partnership Advisory Board, which acts as agent for the Board of County Commissioners in the development and implementation of homeless assistance programs. HIP is also the lead agency for the County's Homeless Continuum of Care, a network or organizations, advocates, residents and businesses that plan programs to help alleviate homelessness in Broward County. The goal is to end veteran homelessness by 2015, chronic homelessness by 2016, and family and youth homelessness by 2020. For more information, call 954-357-6101 or visit Homeless Services.
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