Preliminary results from Yamhill County’s Point in Time homeless count in January indicate that some programs have been impactful in reducing homelessness in the county.
The report, released March 27 by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and compiled with data gathered by Yamhill County Action Partnership, indicates that 381 individuals were experiencing homeless at the time of the count. However, that figure is an estimate only because YCAP volunteers conducting the count are sometimes faced with people “who are unwilling to take the survey or answer all of the questions,” a release from HUD said.
“As a result, we know the 381 number is lower than the actual number of individuals experiencing homelessness in our community, but these conditions are similar from year to year so comparisons can be made from one year to the next,” the release added.
YCAP works with its partner agencies to stage the count at drop-in sites throughout the county, including at libraries and other places frequented by individuals who are unhoused. The agency also organizes street teams to visit with individuals sleeping in tents, RVs, cars, and other places. The count is conducted in all the county’s towns and cities that have a drop-in site, a street team or both. YCAP often contacts local law enforcement in each community to ensure counters have reached individuals who may not be accessible.
The count found that the number of individuals who were living in locations such as cars, streets, tents and recreational vehicles with no hook-ups was 158, down from 182 in the 2023 count. Two-thirds of those individuals were male and included in that mix were 57 chronically homeless households, defined as where at least one person in the household has been chronically homeless for more than one year and has a disability.
Data from the count found that the bulk of the unsheltered individuals (totaling 84%) were in four age groups ranging from 25 to 64 years old, while those under 24 made up 7% of the total, under 18 were 4% of the total and those in excess of 65 years old made up 4% of the total. The good news there are the reductions in number of the very young and the very old who were counted as unsheltered in January.
“When compared with the 2023 PIT count data, you can see a significant reduction in the number of children under the age of 18 and the number of individuals over the age of 65,” the release said. “Through its Turnkey Program, YCAP has prioritized moving families with children and seniors from homelessness into housing and the impact of that work can be seen when comparing this year’s data with the 2023 PIT count data.”
However, the 2024 data indicates that those individuals who were unsheltered at the time of the count had been homeless for longer periods of time then when counted in 2023. The bulk of the 158 people interviewed (40%) said they had been homeless for 36 months or more, with 22% saying they had been homeless for 12 to 23 months. That compares to 16% indicating in 2023 that they had been homeless for 36 months or more.
Sixty-nine individuals (44%) indicated they did not have a substance abuse disorder, while 36 answered “unknown” to that question. Thirty-eight said they were using drugs (24%), eight (24%) said they use alcohol and seven (4%) said they were using both.
Thirty-seven percent of the individuals counted said they had a chronic health condition, 37% (58 people) said they did not and 27% (42 people) said they did not know.
When YCAP personnel questioned whether physical disabilities were hindering the homeless population, 41 people (26%) did not know, 48 people (30%) said they were and 69 people (44%) said they were not. Those saying development disabilities had not exacerbated their homelessness topped 98 people (62%), 13 people (8%) said they were, and 47 people (30%) declined to answer.
The question of mental health disorder prompted 58 people (37%) to admit it was a problem, 58 people (37%) to say it was not and 43 people (27%) who did not know.
What’s to be done with the numbers?
“YCAP uses the data to determine where to invest in future programs and services,” the agency said in a previous release. “For example, pre-COVID, the number of unsheltered in our community continued to rise rapidly, which prompted YCAP to seek additional funding to create new services like the successful Turnkey Program and to significantly expand the Housing Stabilization department. In addition, YCAP has brought in more resources to prevent evictions and first-time homelessness. The success of these programs can be seen in the data.”
The count also helps YCAP on another front, handling those that are unhoused due to physical, mental and behavioral health barriers, which represent a larger percentage than ever before.
“YCAP is working closely with partners in the Behavioral Health Resource Network and transitioning traditional shelters into navigation centers that will provide more wrap-around services and opportunities for partners to engage with the unhoused in a welcoming and trauma-informed space,” the release said.
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