Utah's Plan to Adress Homelessness

Homelessness affects the entire state of Utah. All the large municipalities and many small ones have community members who, for a wide variety of reasons, find themselves unhoused and at risk. It is almost impossible for an individual or family to thrive when living in such adverse conditions. The personal implications of homelessness are broad and can affect multiple generations. Its impact on neighborhoods, public safety, and commerce can be deep and difficult to address. Signs of homelessness are sometimes easy to see, such as camping on sidewalks and in public parks. These visible manifestations of homelessness draw much attention. Unfortunately, all too often homelessness is far less obvious to the public when community members live in their cars, shelters, or other temporary situations. Despite years of focused effort and spending millions of dollars to solve problems, Utah’s experience with homelessness has proved to be perpetual and challenging. Utah Code § 35A-16-203 charges the Utah Homelessness Council and the Coordinator of the Utah Office of Homeless Services with creating “a statewide strategic plan to minimize homelessness in the state.” Pursuant to these provisions, the Utah Homelessness Council conducted a nationwide search for a consulting group to perform a careful study of homelessness in Utah and to help draft a strategic plan to “minimize it.” The goal was to find an organization with wide experience in helping states and communities address homelessness. That search led to contracting with Homebase, a non-profit “dedicated to building community capacity to prevent and end homelessness.” Beginning early in 2022 and working under the direction of the Utah Homelessness Council and Coordinator of Homeless Services, Homebase undertook a comprehensive review of homelessness throughout Utah. Homebase reviewed multiple survey reports, interviewed community leaders, Office of Homeless Services employees, homeless and social service providers, persons with lived experience with homelessness, and other stakeholders and reported their findings to the Homelessness Council. Homebase’s experience with successful practices from other jurisdictions and familiarity with Utah’s homelessness situation provided a foundation for its team to draft a proposed strategic plan, consulting regularly during the process with a group appointed from the Homelessness Council, the Coordinator of Homeless Services, and the Utah State Office of Homeless Services. Over time, the plan set forth in this booklet was developed and then approved by the Council and Coordinator. The Shared Vision Statement of the Utah Homelessness Council and Office of Homeless Services in this Strategic Plan states: “Our vision for the homeless response system in Utah is to make homelessness rare, brief, and non-recurring; that all people experiencing homelessness can thrive to their fullest potential; and that our communities are stable and safe for everyone.” We recommend the Strategic Plan to everyone in Utah and invite the coordinated investment of community members, elected leaders, public employees, and stake holders in studying, applying, and working together to achieve this vision