Blue Ridge Point in Time Report shows slight decrease in people experiencing homelessness

Yahoo

a day ago

ROANOKE, Va. (WFXR) – It's a problem most cities deal with: homelessness. The Roanoke Valley is no exception.
To put the problem into perspective, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development requires regional groups, like the Blue Ridge Continuum of Care to perform a Point in Time count twice a year.
According to the Point in Time count, for the first time since 2023, the number of people experiencing homelessness in the Roanoke Valley is decreasing.
The count shows the number of people experiencing homelessness during January 2025 was 389. That's down from the Winter 2024 count, which was 409.
'The overall decrease was about 3% or 3.2% over 2024, over our winter count last year. A modest decrease and I think maybe a stabilization post-pandemic. 24 and 23 we really saw significant spikes with eviction protections expiring after the pandemic ended,' said Roanoke Human Services Administrator, Matt Crookshank.
Crookshank is the Human Services Administrator for the City of Roanoke and works with the Blue Ridge Continuum of Care.
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The Point in Time count also looks at trends among people experiencing homelessness, like the number of people considered unsheltered, or sleeping outside.
'Unsheltered numbers went down a little bit, about 8%. But we did have a cold weather shelter at a church in the southeast that stood up this year. So if we included those people, who are typically outside, we would have seen an increase in those unsheltered numbers,' said Crookshank.
Belmont Presbyterian opened their doors this Winter at first as a warming shelter during the day, but quickly saw the need to stay open overnight.
'Well, we really started it up as a day thing,' said Pastor Todd Atkins. 'Then, I got a call from the hospital, Roanoke Memorial. They said, 'We've got a guy here, he doesn't have anywhere to go, and we heard y'all are a warming center,' said Atkins.
'I thought, 'Oh my gosh', maybe this is what we are supposed to do. So we did it. The one guy came. It was for one guy from the hospital. And then I got in my truck and drove around to see if there was anyone else on the streets. This is when it was like 20 degrees out. I found like four or five people. Then we opened it [the warming shelter] up and next thing we knew we had 50 to 60 people in here,' said Atkins.
With the cold weather shelter at Belmont Presbyterian only being temporary, the 31 people who were spending the night there the night of the Point in Time count, are most likely back out on the street.
'[We are] still seeing lots of folks outside, lots of chronically homeless folks with really severe underlying issues,' said Crookshank.
'Seems to be a greater count of people who are not only struggling with some of the things we always think about, like affordable housing, income, mental illness and addiction,' said Rescue Mission CEO, Lee Clark. 'But more people who are elderly experiencing being homeless for the first time that have those mobility challenges, physical health challenges, mental health challenges that come with us as we age.'
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The combination of these challenges led the Rescue Mission to create their Fralin Free Clinic Medical Street Outreach program. They've also partnered with RAM House to offer transportation to and from the two shelters. These changes are addressing immediate needs for the homeless population.
The Rescue Mission is also working towards long-term solutions by building affordable housing units.
The latest numbers show Roanoke is experiencing an over 3,000 unit deficit.
'We had land that was vacant, about four acres that sits right off of Elm Avenue, that sits adjacent here to the Rescue Mission. We thought, what will be good that is going to be positive for Southeast, good for the neighborhood, good for the people we serve,' said Clark.
'We partnered with a group for Homes for America. They have more than 30 years experience providing affordable housing. We are applying for low income housing tax credits. We are hopeful the application will get approved this month and we will get to start with the first building in 2026. All together there will be three buildings on the site, about 150 affordable housing units,' said Clark.
Slowly, but surely, officials believe progress continues with the help of countless groups, like The Rescue Mission, RAM House, The Least of These Ministries and the recently approved Mayor's Hope and Home Task Force all working towards the same goal.
'It's encouraging but we know we still have lots of work to do,' said Crookshank.
This year's second Point in Time count is scheduled to take place in July.
Find the complete Winter 2025 report, here.
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