Homelessness is on the rise across the country and here in Central New York, increasing locally more than 60% since 2019, meaning that nearly 1,200 people in our community find themselves unsheltered or in temporary settings on any given night. Having a coordinated community response is more important than ever in the efforts to end homelessness.

Each community across the country has what is known as Housing and Urban Development’s Continuum of Care of homelessness. The Housing & Homeless Coalition of Central New York (HHC) acts as the Continuum of Care for Central New York. The HHC organizes community resources, collects and analyzes data from community partners, and develops community-wide strategies to streamline the homelessness response system.

This FOCUS Forum will discuss how the HHC operates and is structured, report on the state of homelessness in our community, and how our community can rise to the growing challenges of homelessness and housing insecurity.