A couple of weeks back — when I was in Memphis, in fact — I wrote about how the private sector was once again stepping to the plate to deal with Columbia’s problem with homeless people. The United Way, the Chamber, the Salvation Army and a consortium of other churches had put together a plan for a one-stop service center to deal with the homeless, and the Knight Foundation (with which I was once associated, but no more) had put up a challenge grant of $5 million.
I also reminded y’all of how the Columbia City Council killed the last such effort, and was naysaying the latest one, which did not bode well.
Well, another major nonprofit player in town stepped up this week to commit to the latest effort that is happening in spite of a lack of encouragement from the city:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Central Carolina Community Foundation Presents Midlands Housing Alliance with $500,000 to Fund Homeless Transition Center
Nonprofit Corporation Contributes $100,000 Upfront plus a Four-Year Annual Commitment of $100,000COLUMBIA, S.C. – July 18, 2008 – The Central Carolina Community Foundation (CCCF), a nonprofit corporation that empowers donors to make effective charitable giving decisions by linking them to different areas of community need, announces its donation of $500,000 to the Midlands Housing Alliance to fund the Homeless Transition Center that is planned for the current Salvation Army site in downtown Columbia. Today, $100,000 was granted with an annual commitment of $100,000 for the next four years.
“Our role as a community foundation is not only to support humanitarian needs in our community,” stated Board Chair David Sojourner, “but also to address strategic issues and to be a catalyst in bringing together leaders, donors and organizations working to resolve community problems. Our Board of Trustees recognizes that this comprehensive plan is the best approach to break the cycle of homelessness.”
CCCF will challenge and encourage its donors to contribute to the Alliance and the homeless services center, which was jump-started by a $5 million challenge grant from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation June 26, 2008. The grant provides $5 million to fund the development of the center and organizers are seeking approximately $5 million from private organizations and the business community, and an additional $5 million from our local government.
Board Vice-Chair Mike Kelly said, “I am very enthusiastic about this strategic opportunity and am committed to supporting it both as a board member and personally. I encourage others in the community to do the same.”
The CCCF has long contributed to addressing the issue of homelessness in the Midlands. As a constituent in the 2004 Blueprint to Address Homelessness and awarding nearly $300,000 to support housing and homelessness in 2007 and 2008, the CCCF believes the comprehensive services center is the next logical step for the Foundation, as well as for the community.
“Our experience working with the homeless people of New Orleans after Katrina offers clear evidence that the transitional center concept with all services provided in one location is an extremely effective way of working with the homeless,” said board member Samuel Tenenbaum. “If we can do it for New Orleans, we can do it for the Midlands!”
Gayle Averyt, a founder and supporter of CCCF, said, “The Knight Foundation’s challenge gift has given Columbia a realistic opportunity to deal effectively with our homelessness problems. Also no organization has more experience managing all aspects of the homeless problem than the Salvation Army. It would be tragic if we don’t take full advantage of the Knight Foundation’s challenge gift. I commend the Central Carolina Community Foundation for making this bold commitment and strongly encourage others to do the same.”About Central Carolina Community Foundation
Central Carolina Community Foundation is a nonprofit organization serving 11 counties in the Midlands by distributing grants and scholarships and linking the resources of donors, nonprofits and community leaders to areas of need. For more information about the Foundation, visit www.yourfoundation.org.
###
OK, city, how about it? Ready to do your part yet?
Related Posts
Just another in a long line of things Columbia has failed to “step-up” for!
“OK, city, how about it? Ready to do your part yet?”
Let me give my perspective on what part the City is doing to address homelessness. First, the City operates the winter shelter that houses over 200 of our fellow citizens from November to March. The annual operating costs run close to $500,000. The Homeless Transition Center proposed by the Midlands Housing Alliance will not include a winter emergency shelter. The City has been asked to continue this service.
Secondly, earlier this year, the City conducted a Request for Proposals for a Housing First Pilot Program. The Housing First model emphasizes immediate placement of the chronically homeless in permanent housing, where they have access to services, on site, necessary to stabilize the individuals and keep them housed. This new strategy is a radical departure from the old model of bringing all the homeless to one site in the evening then dumping them back on the street the next morning. The University of South Carolina Department of Medicine’s Office of Supportive Housing Services and the Columbia Housing Authority were the partnership selected to provide housing and supportive services. USC is providing the case management and other supportive services for the program and the Columbia Housing Authority is providing the housing. The supportive services component of Housing First, sometimes known as the Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) team, is a crucial component of Housing First. The ACT team is composed of persons with expertise and skill in employment placement; alcohol and drug abuse counseling; permanent housing; social security and other government benefits; mental illness counseling; transportation; law; and other important needs of those who have been homeless. Serving the needs of participants in the program 7 days a week, 24 hours a day, the members of the ACT team make sure that those who are housed remain on their medications, help them find employment and address other pressing needs. Housing First has shown that providing stable housing as quickly as possible can result in higher levels of success and cost effectiveness in addressing the core issues that cause homelessness in the first place. This program will serve 25 chronically homeless individuals, and if successful would be expanded to include more. The cost of the first year which includes costs associated with initial start up of the program is approximately $259,866. The amounts budgeted for the second and third year are $465,952 and $471,788 respectively. CDBG funding has been allocated for Housing First and is a potential future funding source for the three-year period of the program. The Homeless Transition Center will not provide permanent housing for the homeless, and the City has been asked to continue our Housing First initiative.
The City is working with the Cottontown, Elmwood, and Earlewood neighborhoods to review and respond to the legitimate issues that the Homeless Transition Center and the Christ Central Ministry pose to those neighborhoods. Additionally, we will at some point be presented, along with other local governments, with a request to fund $5 million of capitol costs for the Homeless Transition Center. That is the part the City is doing.
Correction: make that “capital”