How Coordinated Entry helps Vermonters in need find permanent housing

A federally mandated system works to help the homeless transition into permanent housing without falling through the cracks.
Published: Mar. 27, 2023 at 5:28 PM EDT

WILLISTON, Vt. (WCAX) - A federally mandated system works to help the homeless transition into permanent housing without falling through the cracks. Our Katharine Huntley looks at how the Coordinated Entry system is working in Chittenden County.

Statistics show 794 people in Chittenden County are homeless or are about to be. That’s 618 households that need stable housing.

That’s where the Coordinated Entry system comes in. Housing and Urban Development or HUD requires every community to have Coordinated Entry available.

In Chittenden County, the system was created in 2018 and was designed to keep track of people to make sure they don’t fall through the cracks.

“Words can’t describe how grateful I am for the opportunity that I have right now,” Ian Buck said.

Buck was homeless for six months and then spent years in three different hotels in Chittenden County during COVID. But now, he’s living at Zephyr Place in Williston.

“I don’t have to worry about where I’m going to sleep. I don’t have to worry about cooking food; I have a stove. I can cook in a stove, I don’t have to cook in the microwave. I have a refrigerator with a freezer; I can eat ice cream. There’s all these things that I don’t have to worry about anymore,” Buck said.

Cases workers help Buck stay clean, which he says was extremely difficult at the hotels.

“That’s another weight off my shoulders because I don’t have to worry about somebody coming to my room asking if I want to use,” he said.

Buck found Zephyr Place thanks to Chittenden County’s Coordinated Entry system. When a person walks into a shelter or service provider and says they are homeless, they have the opportunity to get into the Coordinated Entry system.

They do an intake assessment to learn if someone is disabled or has significant health issues, which would help determine which type of housing would work best.

“It’s one thing to place somebody in housing and it’s another to place them in a place where they don’t become homeless again. The short term is not the goal, the long term is the goal,” said Stephanie Smith, the director of the Chittenden County Coordinated Entry System.

Every Monday, service providers gather to discuss cases. Through the Coordinated Entry system, caseworkers are allowed to share information about clients to make sure they’re staying on track.

Coordinated Entry also gives people a chance at housing those not in the program can’t access.

Before Coordinated Entry, people who were struggling would see several housing providers and caseworkers, causing duplication of services. Now, the process is streamlined to make sure everyone is getting the help that best suits their needs.

“Through Coordinated Entry, it’s just allowed our community to have really open and sustained communication so that we can stay in touch, really for the best interest for anyone in housing who might be at risk of losing it,” said Emily Taylor, the resident services manager at the Champlain Housing Trust.

The Champlain Housing Trust is one of the largest landlords overseeing permanent housing for people who are homeless. They have promised 15% of all housing they build will be for formerly homeless people. That’s nearly 300 units currently in Chittenden County available to the Coordinated Entry program. But that’s still not enough.

“It’s terrible when you work with somebody and then you have to sit around and be like, there isn’t anything, there is nothing. That is kind of heartbreaking when you’re like, this household is ready to move into housing. They have their applications in with all the agencies they need to and there is just nothing we can do because there’s just no units,” Smith said.

The Coordinated Entry program might soon be expanding. They would like to serve those at risk of becoming homeless, not just those who are homeless now.

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