Publication Date: Wednesday, July 27, 2005
Survey paints portrait of homelessness
Survey paints portrait of homelessness
(July 27, 2005) Most homeless report having high school degrees, income
by Bill D'Agostino
Most are male. Many are white. Nearly all say they graduated high school. But most report suffering from depression or another mental illness.
These are the results of a Community Working Group survey of 145 homeless or other "at-risk" individuals in the Palo Alto area. The survey, the outcome of which was publicly released this week, was conducted last fall.
Last fall, Dr. Lars Osterberg, an assistant professor at Stanford University's School of Medicine and a director at the Palo Alto Veteran Affairs hospital, and Don Barr, the Community Working Group's president and interim medical director, asked the survey's 43 questions to 190 people they found living on the streets or utilizing homeless services, such as the drop-in center at the Red Cross building near the downtown train station.
"We talked to every person on the street we could find," Barr said.
Perhaps the most unexpected finding is that the median monthly income is $583.
"We found that a lot of these people actually had a decent wage but they couldn't afford a place in Palo Alto where the average one-bedroom apartment is $1,600" a month, Osterberg said. "These people are trying to make a living."
One of the top reasons women said they were on the street, Osterberg noted, is because they were victims of violence.
"They're not homeless because they like to be," he said.
The Community Working Group is currently constructing a new $24 million "Opportunity Center" near downtown Palo Alto, which will provide 89 units of housing and comprehensive homeless services. It's due to open next year.
Notable to Barr, was the fact that more than 40 percent reported that they spent their childhood on the Peninsula.
"These are the kids of our community," Barr said.
Most of the survey's respondents, in fact, have lived at least 20 years on the Peninsula.
"Does that look like a migratory crowd to you?" Barr asked.
Barr and Osterberg also asked the homeless men and women about the worst part of being homeless. Many said it was the stigma and humiliation attached to it.
"The way people look at you," one person stated.
At the end of the survey, respondents were asked if they would like to be placed on the list for one of the Opportunity Center's housing units. Nearly all said they were interested, leaving a waitlist twice as long as the number of units available, Barr noted.
Other findings of the group's survey:
*the average time the person had "stable, long term housing" was 1.7 years ago;
*more than 70 percent failed to eat three meals a day;
*28.3 percent were U.S. military veterans;
*13.3 percent were married;
*the average age was 48 years old;
*74.1 percent were male; and
*45 percent were white, 27 percent were black and 17 percent were Hispanic.
Only 21 percent reported sleeping outside; 7.6 percent said they were sleeping in a vehicle; but more than 50 percent had some kind of short-term or transitional housing.
Nearly 7 percent of those reported having a permanent place to live, but Barr said they interviewed them anyway, because those people are "at-risk" for homelessness and in need of the Opportunity Center's services.
The survey was taken before a number of homeless moved into units in the Palo Alto Hotel, part of the countywide "Housing First" program. But it was also taken before the low-income Craig Hotel closed.
The Community Working Group has been using the data for fundraising, but it will also help its leaders pinpoint the greatest needs for programs.
Lindi, a 47-year-old woman who was sitting in a wheelchair along University Avenue on Monday, gave a mixed review of the area's services, saying they often put up too many barriers to get help.
"They're not good," she said, "but they're not bad."
Staff Writer Bill D'Agostino can be e-mailed at bdagostino@paweekly.com.
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