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SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Office of Homeless Services and the Salt Lake Valley Coalition to End Homelessness have put out a call for volunteers for the annual Point-in-Time Count, a survey providing a single-night assessment of homelessness in Utah.
Volunteers will be asked to go to assigned areas Thursday, Friday and Saturday mornings in small teams to canvass. Volunteers will identify and survey individuals experiencing unsheltered homelessness, to help the state gain insight into the needs and challenges of anyone identified.
Literal homelessness defined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which mandates the count, includes:
- Emergency shelter, including domestic violence service providers
- Transitional housing, including domestic violence housing
- A place not meant for human habitation (such as in a vehicle or a city park)
"It's really my hope that, in the future, we'll be able to count all our people experiencing homelessness in the shelter rather than in the street," said State Homeless Coordinator Wayne Niederhauser.
Some survey topics include questions about barriers to housing, physical and mental health, domestic violence and self-sufficiency. The data collected helps officials set benchmarks to measure progress toward ending homelessness, and plan services and programs to appropriately address local needs.
"We recognize the importance of gathering data to inform policy and strategies to best address issues that impact those experiencing homelessness and our entire community," said Rob Wesemann, co-chairman of the Salt Lake Valley Coalition to End Homelessness.
2023 Point-in-Time Count
Last year's Point-in-Time Count revealed the overall number of individuals experiencing homelessness in Utah increased by 131 individuals compared to the previous year. The count also revealed an increase in chronic homelessness — individuals who have experienced homelessness for at least a year, either continuously, or in four or more separate instances within the past three years.
The 2023 count marked 1,004 individuals who met this definition, comprising 27% of the total count, a 96% increase from the 512 people reported as experiencing chronic homelessness in 2019. Another notable increase were families experiencing homelessness for the first time.
Since the count, plans for a second family shelter has been announced and several programs targeting chronic homelessness, such as the temporary sanctioned campground in Salt Lake City, have been unveiled.
Volunteers can sign up to participate individually or as a team at https://endutahhomelessness.org/salt-lake-valley/salt-lake-county-pit-count/.
