Ten Year Plans To End Homelessness: Not for the masses

When a person goes from living a 'sheltered life' to having a home, there are many challenges they face to sustain themselves that are taken for granted...by others and themselves. Many more 'fall off' the wagon than some would want to admit publicly.

While communities across the nation embrace "10 year plans" to end homelessness, many times they don't offer numbers to justify initial or continued cost. While 'placing' individuals or families into 'secure housing' sounds good, many civil authorities can't 'buy in' to such plans due to the best interest of all residents they serve.

It's not just the residents in existing stable housing, there's the fact of services necessary for the needs of the masses that won't fit into predefined planned homes.

How many people could be served by the same funding used to create a safe campground, potable water for consumption and showers, and availability to transportation by including one local transit bus line adjacent? Local service providers could 'satellite' and rotate regularly employees jointly at such sites for case management, medical, and other existing services rendered in facilities requiring overhead cost that could be invested in the service...not the building to provide services to those not living in buildings.

For over three years I've had the chance of witnessing a police lieutenant of Jacksonville Sheriff's Office personally manage a daytime foot patrol beat of Hemming Plaza. Both him and a fellow officer are seen regularly enough there that I address them both by first name when not in the presence of others.

Jacksonville has in it's ability to provide a safer habitable area than many of it's military currently serving overseas and living 'in the field' experience.

When we get past the notion it requires someone in an office to do 'the right thing', maybe we'll start finding the money in our pockets to have done what was needed long ago.

To serve the residents rather than our self serving goals individually.

If you read this far, thanks. If you don't like the air of it, consider changing the humidifier filters if you're that stuffy.