Mayors, Orange County officials help survey homeless

Chapel Hill Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt, Hillsborough Mayor Tom Stevens, Carrboro Mayor Mark Chilton, Orange County Commissioner Bernadette Pelissier and Chapel Hill Town Council will survey Orange County’s homeless population to find the most vulnerable and target them for a quick housing solution as part of the national 100,000 Homes Campaign (www.100khomes.org) locally sponsored by United Way of the Greater Triangle.
The officials will help out Tuesday, Jan. 24, at various county locations. Kleinschmidt, Chilton, Pelissier and Rich will will be at S. Human Services Center in Chapel Hill at 3:45 a.m. while Stevens will be at S. Country Inn & Fairview Baptist Church in Hillsborough at 5:30 a.m.
The mayors and others will join trained volunteer teams, which will leave their locations at 4 a.m. and head to the areas where homeless are currently bedding down on the streets of Orange County. The Triangle is one of 110 cities/areas across the United States working with the 100,000 Homes Campaign to house 100,000 homeless by 2013. The surveys will assess chronic issues among the homeless and help those in dire need of attention find shelter and medical care as well as other services.

100,000 Homes Campaign volunteers needed

The national 100,000 Homes Campaign is a grassroots effort to find and place the most vulnerable, long-term homeless individuals into 100,000 households across the country by July 2013. To learn more about the campaign, please click here and be inspired by these powerful videos: 100K Homes Introduction and 100K Homes Registry Week/
As part of Common Ground’s 100,000 Homes Campaign, the United Way of the Greater Triangle, the Orange County Partnership to End Homelessness and the Wake County Partnership to End Homelessness are planning a week-long effort called Registry Week to identify and help persons who are homeless obtain and sustain permanent housing.
The goal of Orange and Wake Counties’ Registry Week is to create a by-name registry of people living on our streets and in shelters, enabling us to prioritize those who have significant medical issues and have been homeless the longest. The vulnerability index is administered in the form of a survey, which captures a homeless individual’s health and the duration of his/her homelessness. This ranking allows those with the most severe health risks to be identified and prioritized for housing and other support. What we learn together during Registry Week will help us reduce chronic homelessness in Wake and Orange counties.
The campaign is recruiting dedicated volunteers to canvass streets and shelters to survey the most vulnerable homeless individuals and families. To ensure the most accurate count possible, we will survey individuals during the early morning and evening hours for three consecutive days. The survey findings will be presented at a community debriefing at the conclusion of Registry Week on Friday, Jan. 27.

Volunteer Opportunities:
Sunday, Jan. 22, from 2 to 5 p.m.
Participate in a mandatory volunteer training session at the New Hope Fire Station, 4700 N.C. 86 South in Chapel Hill
Monday, Jan. 23, from 7 to 9 p.m.
Survey homeless people staying in shelters in Orange County.
Tuesday, Jan. 24, from 5 to 7 p.m.
Survey unsheltered homeless people at meal distribution locations in Hillsborough and Chapel Hill.
Tuesday and Wednesday, Jan. 24 and 25, from 4 to 7 a.m.
Take to the streets to survey Orange County’s homeless; we kindly ask that volunteers commit to participating both mornings.

Home sweet home

Eno Haven Apartments is almost ready to open its doors! The senior living complex on U.S. 70-A will finish construction at the end of February and begin occupancy in March. The rooms are spacious with plenty of storage space and the natural view out the back is spectacular. Sherrod Banks, project owner, says he is committed to making quality affordable housing, and he's certainly added some great amenities that will enhance this apartment complex—light sconces in the walls? Window seats in the hallway? It's nicer than my place!
For more information or to apply, call 245-0700 or e-mail eno-haven@cmc-nc.com. Also see the Feb. 2 issue of the News of Orange.
Banks is also looking into building affordable housing apartments (with no age restriction) on a lot near Walmart in Hampton Point. Though the project is still in its infancy, Banks has applied for government funds to help support the project and has brought his idea in an informational session before the Town Board. Stay tuned for more development on the currently dubbed Hampton Point Project!