Project Description
Recognizing that homelessness in Fort Wayne cannot be fully addressed by individual agencies, the City of Fort Wayne, with national nonprofit consultants from Homebase, developed the Everyone Home: Fort Wayne’s Community Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness. This plan, created using local data, gap analyses, focus groups, and input from individuals with lived experience and diverse stakeholders, outlines a collaborative strategy with four key goals and an action plan. Its implementation will enable the City to partner and coordinate resources across sectors to prevent and end homelessness in Fort Wayne.
Jennifer Rutkowski-Smith, Homeless Strategic Plan Manager, discusses Everyone Home Goals with a steering committee member.
Everyone Home Goals
Fort Wayne has a severe shortage of affordable housing. Affordable housing is the most effective solution for ending homelessness by allowing families to focus on maintaining their wellbeing.
No one agency alone can end homelessness. Improving collaboration, coordination, and leveraging investments across the many systems can help the community more effectively address homelessness.
Within Fort Wayne, there are populations at risk of or experiencing homelessness who require special attention. By understanding their unique needs and directing services that allow professionals to tailor their care, the community can ensure that the system is accessible to the most vulnerable.
Many families are just one paycheck or financial crisis away from losing their housing. Often it only requires a small intervention to prevent families from becoming homeless. Supporting families through financial resources is the most cost effective way to prevent homelessness.
Executive Summary
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