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The
Homeless Situation Around Chicago
A point-in-time
count and survey of unsheltered and sheltered homeless persons in Chicago
took place the night of January 27, 2009. A similar count and survey was
conducted in 2007. The intent was to produce a comprehensive count and
survey of the homeless in Chicago. Some key findings in the survey are
shown below:
- Based
on the estimates from the Point-in-Time count "2009" table
there were 6,240 homeless people in the City of Chicago in 2009. This
is 318 persons higher than the estimated 5,922 individuals in 2007 (5%
increase). It should be noted that this increase is in direct correlation
to the increased number of sites participating in the 2009 Count.
- The number
of homeless families (adults with children up to age 21) increased substantially
(45% in shelters; 870 families total) when including the new sites.
- Regarding
age, the largest portion of people homeless are in the 41-60 year old
range (35%) followed by 22-40 year old (29%) and then youth age 17 and
under (28%). This distribution has remained relatively stable since
2005. When comparing sheltered to unsheltered, the portion of youth
increase in shelters to 34% and drops to 2% among unsheltered. Among
unsheltered adults, most (53%) are age 41-60, a slight increase (4%)
since 2007.
- For all
homeless individuals, two-thirds of males and one-third of females report
having spent time in jail or prison. Among homeless adults in shelter,
there was a 6% increase in males who had been in prison or jail and
a slight increase in females (2%). Among unsheltered homeless adults,
there appears to be a significant increase in females (20%) and small
increase in males (7%).
- There
was no change in the rate of "chronic homelessness" among
the population of homeless single adults. In 2007 26% of Chicago's homeless
population met the federal definition of chronic homelessness and in
2009 the rate was 25.9%.
- The majority
of homeless adults continues to be African American (79%). There was
a 5% increase in the Hispanic population, representing 11% of the homeless
population in 2009 compared to 6% in 2007.
For the
Executive Summary of The 2009 City of Chicago Homeless Point-In-Time Count,
click
here.
Source:
Chicago Department of Family & Support Services
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