If you are homeless in Indianapolis, a new program starting this summer will aim to get you into housing.
Streets to Home Indy is an initiative to end long-term and unsheltered homelessness by 2028. The effort will start by focusing on the roughly 350 people who are living outside.
The program involves both private and local government funding. The Coalition for Homelessness Intervention and Prevention is leading the effort.
CHIP and local government leaders announced the initiative June 10.
Important things to know
Streets to Home Indy has three phases.
Some people experiencing homelessness could start to see outreach workers and begin the process of finding housing in late summer or early fall, according to Aryn Schounce, who is a senior policy advisor to Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett.
The program will start small, with a focus on homeless camps.
Schounce said outreach will begin at homeless camps that have fewer than 10 people.
You don’t have to live in a homeless camp to get help, though. The program is for anyone who is homeless, and a later phase will include those staying in shelters.
How does it work?
Outreach workers will talk with you to learn more about your situation and find out what you need.
From there, staff will talk to landlords and look at housing options. The program will include rent assistance, as well as other help such as finding a job and getting health insurance.
The rent assistance is intended to last up to a year, but case workers will work with you to find help beyond that if needed. That could include getting a voucher through the Indianapolis Housing Agency.
Will homeless camps be closed?
Yes, but not right away. Schounce said that will only happen once everyone from a camp is housed.
“It’s not just moving people along. It’s getting folks housed,” she said during a meeting with service providers June 10.
Chelsea Haring-Cozzi, the executive director of CHIP, estimates it will take four to six weeks to get everyone from a camp housed. But it could take longer than that depending on the size of the camp.
What will happen to your belongings?
You’ll have time to collect the belongings you want to keep.
But part of Streets to Home Indy includes money to help buy household items, such as furniture.
How long will this take?
The first phase is expected to last up to a year. That’s the part focusing on those living outside.
From there, the program will focus on housing people who are staying in a homeless shelter.
A later stage of the initiative will focus on preventing people from becoming homeless in the first place. That could include helping people facing eviction and providing short-term help with bills.
How much will this cost?
It will cost about $8 million to get through the first phase of Streets to Home Indy.
More than half of that is already accounted for. The City-County Council recently approved spending $2.7 million, and private fundraising has brought in another $2.7 million.
Faith groups, nonprofits and the mayor’s Leadership Council on Homelessness will continue raising the rest of the money.
There isn’t currently a set budget for the parts of the program to help people staying in shelters and to prevent homelessness.
It is estimated to cost about $22,000 per person to provide rental assistance and other services each year. But the cost can vary depending on each person’s needs.
Who is involved?
Along with CHIP and the mayor’s homelessness council, the program includes organizations that are part of the Continuum of Care, which is a coalition of housing advocates.
RDOOR, an affordable housing developer, will help with rent assistance and working with landlords.
Houston-based Clutch Consulting Group is helping design the program.
Faith groups, such as the Greater Indianapolis Multifaith Alliance, are also involved.
What about IHA?
The yearslong goal of effectively ending and preventing homelessness will involve the Indianapolis Housing Agency.
The agency’s new CEO, Yvonda Bean, is part of the homelessness council. She told Mirror Indy that IHA will help the initiative through project-based vouchers, which subsidize the unit rather than the actual renter.
But Streets to Home Indy won’t completely rely on the agency, which is still under a federal takeover following years of trouble and mismanagement prior to Bean’s arrival.
And as a practical matter, Schounce said running a rent assistance program outside of IHA provides more flexibility and should allow people to get housed quicker.
Mirror Indy, a nonprofit newsroom, is funded through grants and donations from individuals, foundations and organizations.
Mirror Indy reporter Tyler Fenwick covers housing and labor. Contact him at 317-766-1406 or tyler.fenwick@mirrorindy.org. Follow him on X @ty_fenwick and Bluesky @tyfenwick.bsky.social.
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