Homelessness

Austin's system for sheltering people is facing issues as the city stares down another freeze. For one, its shelters can currently hold only 10% of the overall estimated population of Austinites living on the street.

"Every person has a role to play in supporting folks who are living outside," ECHO spokesperson Chris Davis said.

Specific homeless camps may fuel property crime, but one researcher says on average, camps do not appear to increase city-wide crime rates.

Austin's point-in-time count will instead rely on service requests to tally the number of unsheltered people living in the city.

The system, traditionally used to shelter people experiencing homelessness, was stretched in February when residents lost power during the freeze.

The St. David's Foundation has awarded ECHO a $2 million grant for a two-year 12-person project to better connect marginalized Austinites with housing services.

The names of the dead were read aloud, each coupled with the ring of a bell to mark their passing, at a vigil along Auditorium Shores on Sunday.

It's not the tsunami of evictions that some experts had feared, but eviction filings are rising sharply in many cities. Meanwhile, $47 billion from Congress to help is finally reaching more renters.

People forced to move from under I-35 near police headquarters said they weren't offered housing or services. Advocates say that's endemic of a larger equity issue within Austin's response to homelessness.

From 2019 to May of this year, the city allocated $179 million toward homelessness across more than 100 contracts. But auditors struggled to piece together a full picture of the city's agreements.