United Way of North Central Florida and partner agencies will conduct the 2022 Homeless Point-in-Time Count in Alachua County on Thursday, Jan. 27. The annual count will identify the number of sheltered and unsheltered individuals experiencing homelessness throughout the county with results available later this spring.
United Way of North Central Florida has served as the Lead Agency for the North Central Florida Alliance for the Homeless & Hungry, FL-508 homeless Continuum of Care (CoC) since 2018. The CoC catchment area includes the counties of Alachua, Bradford, Gilchrist, Levy and Putnam.
“The count gives the CoC the ability to identify trends in homelessness within the catchment area which helps track the progress of the CoC’s collaborative efforts with local service agencies,” said Patrick Dodds, Director of the Continuum of Care. “The surveys will also provide an assessment of service needs in the community.”
The 2021 Point-in-Time Count showed a 38 percent reduction in homelessness throughout the CoC’s service area and a 21 percent reduction in homelessness in Alachua County.
To minimize exposure and transmission of COVID-19, outreach teams will be comprised solely of staff from United Way, partner agencies and community volunteers with lived experiences of homelessness. Other COVID-19 safety measures include the use of personal protective equipment and digital rather than physical surveys. Volunteers with lived experience will be paid $15 an hour for their time.
The 2022 Point-in-Time Count in Alachua County will take place from a centralized staging location at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church in downtown Gainesville. The count will begin at 6 a.m. and continue until approximately 8 p.m. Counts for the remaining counties will be conducted through Jan. 30, 2022.
