The number of chronically homeless individuals in Washtenaw County has doubled over the past two years, according to the latest report from the Washtenaw County Office of Community and Economic Development and the Washtenaw Housing Alliance.
Additionally, the number of unsheltered homeless individuals reporting a mental illness increased by 12.5 percent from 2011 to 2013, according to the report.
A homeless camp underneath a bridge on the north side of Ann Arbor checked during a survey of homeless individuals in January.
Amy Biolchini | AnnArbor.com file photo
It’s the result of a census conducted Jan. 29 of homeless people found living on the street and the number of homeless individuals living in area shelters at the time.
Surveys of people living on the street are conducted every two years, while homeless shelters track their residents each year.
Chronically homeless is the designation given to people or families that have been without a home for a year or more, or who have experienced at least four episodes of homelessness in the last three years and have a disability.
Courtesy of Washtenaw Housing Alliance
The 2013 count found 344 individuals living in homeless shelters and 166 people living on the streets -- a total of 510 people.
On average each year, 3,000 to 4,000 individuals are homeless in Washtenaw County.
Veterans who are homeless are increasingly finding shelter through area services, as the portion of the unsheltered homeless population that are veterans decreased from 3.2 percent in 2011 to 2 percent in 2013, while the percentage of homeless veterans in area shelters increased by three percent from 2011 to 2013.
Julie Steiner, executive director of the Washtenaw Housing Alliance, attributed the decline to the increased collaboration between the Veteran Affairs Medical Center and shelter programs.
Courtesy of Washtenaw Housing Alliance
Amy Biolchini covers Washtenaw County, health and environmental issues for AnnArbor.com. Reach her at (734) 623-2552, amybiolchini@annarbor.com or on Twitter.