The City of Sacramento is stepping up efforts to tackle the homelessness crisis, with the latest action laid out in a recent report. According to Sacramento City Express, from April 7-13, the City received 878 calls to their 311 service concerning unsheltered individuals in the area.
In response, the City's Incident Management Team (IMT) closed 971 calls, indicating resolution or compliance. The figures might suggest a bustling efficiency, but the numbers alone don't capture the entirety complexities of homelessness nor the lives at stake. Even as outreach efforts from the City's Department of Community Response saw 53 people entering databases for shelter matching, an additional 25 found placement in the City’s Roseville Road campus or the Outreach and Engagement Center.
Shelter availability, however, remains a point of concern. Last Tuesday, a count showed scarce resources with zero Pallet homes and only one trailer remaining at the Roseville Road campus, while the Outreach and Engagement Center reported having 34 spaces open. Apart from these facilities, there was an average of 33 slots open in City-funded shelters.
Addressing the environmental impact of encampments, the City also reported the clean-up of 139,920 pounds of trash. The ongoing effort is part of a broader initiative the City has adopted to manage issues related to homelessness. Public access to the workings of the IMT is provided via a dedicated online data dashboard, which holds records of progress dating back to September 2023.
The challenges are monumental, yet the City’s comprehensive response continues to evolve in the face of an issue that persists as a pressing societal concern. For more details on the measures taken and the resources deployed by Sacramento in its ongoing battle against homelessness, the public can review the City's weekly progress reports and explore the available data through its online platform.
