The City of Santa Monica will conduct its annual street-by-street homeless count on the night of January 25, rain or shine, and all 250 volunteer slots have been filled.
The annual count “helps assess the City’s efforts in addressing homelessness,” according to the City, and will be held in conjunction with other counts throughout the region taking place next week.
Volunteers meet at St. Monica’s Catholic Community Grand Pavilion where a briefing will precede the street count.
“Every year, Santa Monicans volunteer their time to get a count of Santa Monica’s homeless population,” City staff said. “The Count begins at St. Monica Catholic Community Grand Pavilion with a kick-off event and training. Volunteers then deploy in teams to cover every area of the city by foot and by car to conduct a visual count of people sleeping in public places. At the same time, homeless individuals will be counted in shelters, transitional programs, local area hospitals and other overnight facilities.”
This is the most important event of the year to garner a strong understanding of the scope of homelessness in Santa Monica as well trends over time, according to the City.
Count results help the City: Understand trends among the City’s homeless population; Adapt local homeless service programs; Comply with HUD and local stakeholder requirements; and
Raise public awareness about the issue of homelessness.
