The funding announced Thursday will support emergency shelter accommodations for the winter and staffing for HUBs where those facing housing instability can obtain services.

By Ronni Newton

The weather on Thursday morning was starkly colder than the recent 80-degree days, and the sudden chill – a reminder that winter is just around the corner – served as an appropriate backdrop for an announcement of $8 million in funding through the Connecticut Department of Housing for homelessness prevention and support services.

Thursday morning’s press conference, which included Gov. Ned Lamont, several state lawmakers, and other officials, was held at the West Hartford furniture bank operated by Journey Home, an area nonprofit that is one of five area agencies that will split $4.5 million in the grant earmarked to support cold weather emergency shelters over the coming winter.

“Every individual and family across the state of Connecticut deserves a safe, warm place to call home,” said Julian Pierce, deputy commissioner of the Department of Housing. Shelter capacity has been expanded since 2019, as DOH has also strengthened its networks and “prioritized rapid rehousing,” he said. “Last winter alone, DOH funding helped nearly 5,000 individuals find refuge from the cold.”

In addition, as part of the overall grant DOH is also providing $3.5 million in grants to 11 nonprofits that staff 14 HUBs across the state – the physical entry points he referred to as “beacons of hope,” where “people experiencing housing instability could connect with services, build a plan, and start their journey towards stability.”

Pierce said in the past year there has been an increase of 574 shelter beds, and while homelessness continues to increase in the state, the rate of increase dropped by 3.5% and family households experience homelessness also dropped – indicating that prevention is working but there is more to be done.

Matthew Morgan, executive director of the nonprofit Journey Home, said they are concerned about the approach of winter. “Journey Home coordinates all of the cold weather programs, right here in the Capital Region, so we work with all of the different sites,” he said, about 10 different warming center programs.

“Last year, our partner agencies were not able to serve everybody in a shelter who needed it,” Morgan said. One person got frostbite and lost their legs, and others have passed away. “With the American Rescue Plan funding expiring, that had been funding all of these cold weather programs, we were really worried that without the state stepping up we would have quite a catastrophe on our hands this winter. So we are so relieved and so grateful that Connecticut has decided to invest in its people and keep them safe and warm,” he said, thanking Lamont, the state legislature, and the Connecticut DOH.

Morgan said even with the investment, “We are still extremely concerned that we saw a 45% increase in unsheltered homelessness over the past year and are worried that we may not be able to offer shelter to everyone who needs it this winter without additional investment in shelter and housing resources.”

Sarah Fox, CEO of the Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness, expressed her thanks to the governor, legislators, and communities across the state, but also expressed her concern. “We are gravely concerned about the impending federal cuts and what we will see going into the future and what that will mean for our neighbors across the state.”

Housing is critical, Fox said, and “I also know that together we can have impact. Together we can save lives, and that is what we are all invested in.”

State Sen. Derek Slap (D-West Hartford) said the forthcoming cold weather will bring life and death decisions for some people. “I think many people think homelessness is something that happens to somebody else, and it doesn’t affect them, but in reality so many of our constituents are one paycheck away, one health care calamity away from finding themselves without a home, or without heat.”

Connecticut has an affordability issue that is being addressed, Slap said, with measures including a middle class and lower income tax cut, and funding to make child care and early childhood education more affordable. “But the federal cuts are here and they’re going to get worse. We have a president who is cutting the social security safety net as we speak,” he said, citing as one example the recent unilateral layoffs of the federal workers who administer the LIHEAP (Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program).

Slap expressed his hope that in the state legislature’s upcoming session, “I hope that we address basic human needs. We cannot have, here in this state, people freezing to death. We cannot have children who are going without food because of what the federal government is doing.”

State Rep. Kate Farrar (D-West Hartford), who represents the 20th District where Journey Home’s furniture bank is located, echoed Slap’s comments. “I think standing here all together today makes it clear that we believe and value in this state that no one should go without a safe home, no one should go without food and health care, and no one should have to suffer in the cold.”

The federal government claimed “they were going to be cutting waste fraud, and abuse,” Lamont said. “That’s not what they’re doing. This whole shutdown thing is a battle about how much you’re going to jack up people’s health insurance costs. Our SNAP benefits, that provides side food for people who otherwise may not have enough to eat, that runs through the end of this month if the feds can’t make a deal,” he said. “When it comes to homelessness and housing, we’re doing a lot but we’ve got to do more.”

Lamont said he hopes to have the legislature back for a special session to consider – along with the housing bill that continues to be  a topic of ongoing discussions – the issue of corporate buyers of rental properties that then jack up the rates 20 or 30%, adding to the problem of homelessness. “Let’s cap what they can do,” he said.

The governor also urged people to donate unneeded furniture to Journey Home. “Help people get started. It’s a show of respect and dignity and helps them get going.”

The furniture bank at 595 New Park Avenue in West Hartford is a site where clients who are transitioning out of homelessness, who have been identified through social service organizations, can come to select the furniture and household items they need to create a home. The furniture bank is operated primarily by volunteers who pick up furniture and other items from donors, sort it, and deliver it to clients throughout the region. Journey Home is also in the process of launching “Home for Good,” a thrift store that will serve as a  social enterprise business to help fund the agency’s operations. Home for Good will be opening just across the driveway from the furniture bank, at 591 New Park Avenue.

The following is the breakdown of the announced $8 million in grant funds:

• Journey Home – $1,210,050 – Hartford and Tolland Counties
• New Opportunities – $312,750 – Meriden, Wallingford, and Middlesex County
• The Housing Collective – $1,310,400 – Fairfield County, Litchfield County, and Waterbury
• United Way of Greater New Haven – $1,040,400 – Greater New Haven
• United Way of Southeastern Connecticut – $626,400 – New London & Windham Counties

The following organizations will receive funding for other homelessness support services:

• Community Health Resources – $262,285  – Greater Hartford, including Manchester and Bristol
• Community Renewal Team – $75,000 – Greater Hartford
• Friendship Service Center – $75,000 – New Britain
• Homes With Hope – $127,500 – Norwalk
• Mercy Shelter and Housing Corporation – $535,633 – Greater Hartford and Middletown
• New Opportunities – $165,537  – Meriden
• Pacific House – $127,500 – Stamford
• St. Vincent de Paul of Bristol – $75,000 – Bristol
• The Housing Collective – $484,448 – Bridgeport, Danbury, Torrington, and Waterbury
• United Way of Greater New Haven – $225,000 – New Haven
• United Way of Southeastern CT – $393,750 – Eastern Connecticut
• UniteCT – $953,347 – Statewide Eviction Prevention

Like what you see here? Click here to subscribe to We-Ha’s newsletter so you’ll always be in the know about what’s happening in West Hartford! Click the blue button below to become a supporter of We-Ha.com and our efforts to continue producing quality journalism.