Photo by Whitehorse Star
HOMELESS COUNT – A Point-in-Time count of the city's homeless will be done next month. Above is the Salvation Army emergency shelter used by many who are without shelter.
City’s first count of the homeless set for April
Whitehorse’s first Point-in-Time (PiT) Homeless Count will take place over 24 hours next month.
Whitehorse’s first Point-in-Time (PiT) Homeless Count will take place over 24 hours next month.
It will be conducted by the Council of Yukon First Nations (CYFN), the Yukon Planning Group on Homelessness, and various volunteers, it was announced this morning.
This project will be funded by the federeal government’s Homelessness Partnering Strategy.
“There are no exact numbers of the amount of homeless individuals in Whitehorse,” said CYFN Grand Chief Ruth Massie.
“And, broadly speaking, Yukon has some unique challenges to address given the higher cost of living and limited supply and access across the housing continuum.
“Participation in this nationally co-ordinated event will provide a snapshot of what homelessness looks like for Whitehorse and establish a base line of information for future PiT counts.”
Trained volunteers will count and survey individuals who are staying in shelters, living in short-term housing and/or sleeping rough (without shelter).
The PiT Count will also include other forms of homelessness, such as people staying temporarily with friends (hidden homeless).
By expanding the PiT Count, officials will have a better idea of the number of people experiencing homelessness in the city.
The results from the PiT Count will be publicly available, with the intent to improve the national response to homelessness.
“In the future, successive counts will allow us to measure progress towards our ultimate goal: a co-ordinated effort to ending homelessness across Canada,” the count’s organizers said in a statement.
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Comments (16)
Up 0 Down 0
Josey Whales on Mar 28, 2016 at 12:00 pm
I have counted the homeless and there are too many of them.
Not sure what the other Josey was saying, what I think I got was he is right and anyone with power and authority on these matters is wrong. Josey must have been the odd man out in school.
Up 0 Down 0
Joe on Mar 28, 2016 at 11:57 am
I guess the homeless count and report prepared by the yapc in 2013 doesn't count. Let's do it again and waste more time and money, and don't forget the photo-ops. Meanwhile street corner dude is hungry.
Up 0 Down 0
Jwhite on Mar 26, 2016 at 4:26 pm
The cost of living did not go up by 6%.
Up 2 Down 1
City Mayor and Manager creating an environment of homelessness on Mar 26, 2016 at 11:14 am
by increasing the cost of living by 6.3% for residents.
Up 2 Down 0
Rob from Ottawa on Mar 25, 2016 at 9:34 pm
First time writing. Few mths following.
As I prepare my motor home for my BIG MOVE to my FINAL DESTINATION....YUKON.....
I am now wondering what will be my hopefully NEW RESIDENCE.
Will there be one for me when I arrive?
It smells like AGENDA 21 UP THERE!
Up 3 Down 0
67scotty10 on Mar 25, 2016 at 10:46 am
Studies, studies, studies. What do we do when we have counted the homeless????
We need to take a page out of Medicines Hats book and eliminate homelessness altogether. Why reinvent the wheel. Use their model.
Up 1 Down 0
Dirk on Mar 24, 2016 at 9:04 pm
I get you Josey. Also Clint is my idol.
Up 2 Down 4
Josey Wales on Mar 23, 2016 at 11:19 pm
Hey jc...Geez I guess I'll try, seems public school has left lasting effects.
Can you understand our substitute drama teacher?
Or Broom Hilda from YT NDP?
He/she speaks in platitudes and sound bites, but that is seemingly OK as regressive leftists hear/read that way. Not implying you jc are a RL, just seems a good way to discredit a POV whining I cannot understand Josey's gibberish.
Funny that though jc, seems despite the lack of alleged clarity and admittedly poor structure, folks STILL understand me enough to loathe me and my POV.
However, I will try harder so all the academia snobs and grammar Nazi's do not get upset when leaving their safe space that only living in a fantasy land can provide.
jc, how was that...first try?
your welcome.
Up 7 Down 4
jc on Mar 23, 2016 at 7:30 am
Josey wales: Just curious, can you not write a complete sentence so people can understand what you are saying?
Up 15 Down 1
ProScience Greenie on Mar 22, 2016 at 7:33 pm
Endless studies, year after year, decade after decade, with zero results tends to make some cranky.
Hard questions need to be asked. Did bringing in all those TFWs at higher than minimum wage have anything to do with the number of homeless in town? Where was the official opposition on that? Why is there so much empty commercial space? Who's bringing in the crack cocaine into this town and why is it increasing? Why do the powers that be, including many that talk loudly about helping the homeless, avoid bursting the real estate bubble in CoW? Is it because they don't want to see their own holdings go down in value? How effective are these studies and the organizations themselves? Is that the best way to proceed or do we need a better way? Are the programs already in place fair to all that are in need?
Again, there was a solution to homeless problem with all those little shacks with crooked stove pipes you see in any Jim Robb painting but that's all paved over and built up now without a whisper of concern from anybody. Times have changed but that model still has some merit.
Up 11 Down 3
YTer on Mar 22, 2016 at 3:38 pm
Josey Wails (and wails, and wails)
Holy cranky old white-guys. Probably a club for them. They have it in the states, its the GOP.
Up 11 Down 10
Josey Wales on Mar 22, 2016 at 8:17 am
hmm...reads purdy vague this most recent "study" pays wages like all do.
YFN is getting a grant to count?
Are they counting all or just the citizens they are not taking care of which are their brethren?
I have to say, kinda a conflict really.
The numbers given will be able to be ripped to shreds no doubt.
There are many many folks of all ethnicity's whom are really really struggling in these troubled times. My bet is they are counting kin, and the "reporter" couldn't figure a way to spin that...so just go vague in the narrative?
Our political blowholes at all levels including the alleged "sovereign" crews, are so distracted with epic loads of bulls**t, narcissistic agenda's, and lining their pockets, cronyism etc...to give a rats a** about us mere "subjects".
nah....let's FLOOD the country with even more 3rd world to feel warm and fuzzy rattling your liberal saber of societal breakdown and engineering.
Ya know what takes folks outta poverty? Jobs and that is it! Not love, not recycling ponzi schemes, not parkifying the entire Yukon, not spending money on race/class wars, not outta this world taxation and user fees, not new Govy' bling to keep the nobles appeased.
You too you political blowholes...ALL I repeat ALL of you...even the cultural elitists ones we cannot vote for...but sure seem to rule us.
A little ironic eh? we should remedy that with a "everyone is equal Act"
....not the absolute charade it currently is with the facade built by PC Crusaders.
Up 19 Down 9
City mayor doesn't love his on Mar 22, 2016 at 6:31 am
Yukon party and premier cares for Yukoners and would not let this happen. Where are NDP and liberals on this issue?
Up 4 Down 6
Michelle on Mar 21, 2016 at 10:16 pm
I think you need sound information to make decisions and policies. And it's about time they got it, after all it's only 2016.
Up 20 Down 1
joe on Mar 21, 2016 at 4:46 pm
More waste of time and effort by governments. Always doing useless studies and plans and making announcements for photo ops. Homelessness is prevalent across the country, there are numerous statistics already available. Just pick a per capita number and take action instead of funding studies and useless plans. Oh, and I guess everyone forgot about the poverty coalition's homeless count a few years ago.
Up 26 Down 4
City Mayor creating harder times on Mar 21, 2016 at 3:16 pm
for the poor, seniors, homeless, low income people and disabled by raising the cost of living in the City by 6.3% this year.