Jan 30 2009
2009 One Night Count
The 2009 One Night Count of King County’s homeless took place this morning at 2:00 a.m. While I encourage my staff to get involved in causes that touch their hearts, I was pleased to see that all three chose to volunteer and work with homeless advocates – the experience was a glimpse into the lives of many of our neighbors who are homeless and without shelter.
Michael Jerrett, Jennifer Samuels, and Vinh Tang, got involved by rolling up their sleeves and contributing their time and resources. They counted in areas near Qwest and Safeco Field, the International District, Squire Park, and parts of Downtown Seattle. While each was assigned to three separate teams, the count in those locations varied from 3, 15, and 73 unsheltered individuals. In all, the final tally from this county-wide effort totaled 2,826. In the Seattle limits, surprisingly, the exact number from 2008 was counted — 1,976.
As more numbers are gathered in the next few months from shelters and transitional housing units, the Seattle/King county Coalition on Homelessness are estimating approximately the same total of 8,600 from 2008.
The One Night Count is done to bring attention to the homeless issue and is also necessary to quality for federal assistance. Last year, the County received $18.4 million in federal assistance. For the 2009-2010 City’s budget, Council added $2.5 million in funding for homeless assistance and shelters.
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