Gov. Hochul's homeless outreach program has housed 450 New Yorkers in 2 years

WNYC News

A state initiative aimed at helping homeless New Yorkers living on the streets and subways has placed more than 450 individuals in long-term or permanent housing in two years, new data from the governor’s office shows.

Gov. Kathy Hochul’s Safe Options Support program deploys trained social workers, clinicians, nurses, case managers and people who have experienced homelessness to canvass locations across four boroughs. The 14 teams visit the same locations repeatedly until a homeless person accepts assistance, such as a snack, a bottle of water, mental health services, shelter or more permanent housing.

“Each attempt is building on a longer-term process and that eventually most people will come around with time and accept some type of support or service,” said Tracey Wilson, director of the homeless support unit at the state’s Office of Mental Health.

“The staffing that we have on the teams and the training of the teams that we provide is really just focused on hearing people's stories, starting out by introducing yourself, asking questions, being interested and engaged, and just slowly working to build that rapport and trust over time.”

The newly released stats are an early marker of the program’s success and come as homelessness rates reach record highs and as Mayor Eric Adams ramps up policing on the subways to target what he said is a perception of lawlessness.

Read the full story on Gothamist.com