The ambitious goal set in the spring of last year by Chairman of the Guilford County Board of Commissioners Skip Alston to essentially end homelessness in Guilford County before the winter of 2023 wasn’t met, and now the new goal is to do so by the winter of 2024 if not before.
Though this winter has been relatively mild, there are still a lot of homeless suffering on cold nights across Guilford County, so the cities of Greensboro and High Point along with a host of community partners are working to address the problem.
To that end, the Guilford County Homelessness Taskforce is holding a meeting with all the stakeholders on Wednesday, March 6 to build on the progress that’s already been made. The meeting, which starts at 4 p.m., will be held in the Steve Drew Conference Room in the City of Greensboro’s Water Resources Operation Center at 2602 South Elm-Eugene Street in Greensboro.
The meeting will be open to the public and, in the past, some homeless county residents have even shown up and offered advice to the taskforce’s leaders about programs they’ve seen working in other parts of the country.
The meeting will also be streamed via zoom at https://www.zoomgov.com/j/1600541332 and can be heard by telephone by calling 646-828-7666 and entering the webinar ID 160 054 1332.
Guilford County government has been shifting some projects around in recent months to speed up its response to homelessness. That happened after Alston came down hard on staff late last year in a public meeting when he complained that the county wasn’t moving fast enough in establishing new beds that could take in those currently sleeping on the streets.
Alston told the Rhino Times that, before 2023, the different local governments and community groups were doing what they could but had no grand overall strategy. He said with the taskforce meetings, like the one coming up in March, everyone is working together in a more coherent and strategic manner.
One thing that’s helping a whole lot is the money from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). Among other funding, Guilford County has allocated $8 million in federal money for projects that address homelessness in the area – such as $3.4 million for the acquisition of property to create a residential drug and alcohol recovery facility and to support transition into housing.
The county also allocated $2 million toward the creation of a Center for Hope and Healing in the City of High Point and $1 million for Guilford County Continuum of Care, which includes funding for partners such as the YWCA, Servant Center and the Tiny Houses project.
The Summit Ave. around the Oaks motel is a gathering place for drugs-prostitution and crime. Every time you go to one of the stores in this area. You are bombarded with transit people begging for money. It’s just not a safe place to be. It doesn’t do any good to call GPD because they know what is happening. There needs to be more place for these people to get help. Jail isn’t the place these people need; they need to go into rehab. However, the city council and the police chief have no intentions of getting these people the help they need. It’s really sad to watch.
Transport several of the homeless to city council meetings to ask for help. Have the news media attend the council meetings. Then we will see how the city council and mayor respond.
The 1 million plus dollars given to the non successful cure for violence program could have been better used to support this situation instead of lining the pockets of certain city council who have no accountability to the citizens of Greensboro.
To JDC: most of these drug users don’t want help. Many have been sent to rehab and they leave on their own. You cannot force them to stop using. It’s something they have to decide.
Each of these does address the issue of homelessness but I don’t see any programs or allocation of funds to get these people on their own two feet. At the risk of sounding like an echo;
“Give me a fish and I eat today, TEACH ME TO FISH and I’ll eat forever.
Some people want to be homeless for whatever reasons, and they have the right to live like that so long as they’re not harming anyone else.
They certainly have the right to repudiate the smug cabal of do gooders who incessantly harangue and harass them in order to satisfy their own emotional needs.
Ah yes. . .the printing presses of government. Don’t worry that these kind of “gifts” were not part of the budget, most of them never are brought up in the light of day but are used to help out the local politicians who can say. . .”see how much money I got for you?”
First let me say as the Founder and Executive Director of Tiny House Community Development we appreciate the $55k that we used to hire an Outreach Coordinator for our HOPE Center a resource center that provides resources to individuals and families experiencing homelessness or Poverty in Guilford County. As you can imagine $55k doesn’t do much towards a $150k +\- HOPE Center budget. Over the last year we have provided over 3,000 hot breakfast on Saturday mornings and 3,900 continental breakfast M-F, housing, education and jobs to many. Unfortunately anyone who believes they can end homelessness is DREAMING! Unfortunately the task force is being run by politicians and this will never end well for our friends experiencing homelessness! We have invited elected officials to visit the HOPE Center to no one ever comes! If you want to see a failed government supported project just drive east down Washington Street you will witness a failed government project!!! Michelle Kennedys relationship with staff and money exchange should be investigated by State and Federal authorities!
Thanks for all your work.
You could have done wonders with the million plus dollars GIVEN to councilwoman Johnson’s non- proven program “cure for Violence “. You would and do have accountability unlike Councilwoman Johnson and her program.
Yes, our elected officials who are supposed to represent ALL of Greensboro only take care of friends of the council, not ALL the citizens of Greensboro.
Thank you and keep up the great job you all are doing!
All this homeless spending is a joke. Just going to lure more people to Guilford County for handouts. Waste of Christian taxpayers money. Hire more law enforcement to man road checks
What does Christianity have to do with anything? You people have to inject religion into everything don’t you? Homelessness is not a matter of faith. And what do you propose we do? Let our fellow humans perish? Very Jesus-like of you!
Seems some homeless came here from other parts of the country. They heard about the freebies.
I read a survey about the homeless in another State. Their findings were that approx 1/3 were between jobs, 1/3 had drug/mental issues, and 1/3 will remain homeless by choice.
Now, drug addiction is the main problem, not homelessness. Our local govt is not addressing the real problem, just turning the City into a beacon for bums. The Democrat Playbook.
If homelessness is such a problem. Why was the low income Smith Homes torn down with no public notice and again you can’t get answers from anyone about it
Was this meeting recorded? I would like to view it, if possible. Is this a monthly meeting?