Homeless person Dennis Davis attends the HUD event saying that it is difficult for a non-homeless person to know what it’s like to be without a warm, clean place to sleep and bath.  (Photo by HB Meeks/Tell Us USA News Network) 

HUD awards over $73M to help end homelessness in Michigan including $25M in Detroit

Federal grants to help a total of 274 homeless assistance programs statewide
 

DETROIT, MI – U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Ben Carson announced nearly $2.2 billion in grants to support thousands of local homeless assistance programs across the nation. HUD's Continuum of Care grants will provide critically needed support to approximately 6,593 local programs across the country that are on the front lines, serving individuals and families experiencing homelessness. This is the first of two announcements of Continuum of Care awards.

Nearly $73.4 million was awarded across Michigan to support 274 programs serving individuals experiencing homelessness. View a complete list of all the state and local homeless projects awarded funding.

"A safe, affordable place to call home is key when creating a path toward opportunity and self-sufficiency," said Secretary Carson in Columbus, where he made the funding announcement. "The grants awarded today help our partners on the ground to reduce homelessness in their communities and help our most vulnerable neighbors."

HUD Continuum of Care grant funding supports a broad array of interventions designed to assist individuals and families experiencing homelessness, particularly those living in places not meant for habitation, located in sheltering programs, or at imminent risk of becoming homeless. Each year, HUD serves more than a million people through emergency shelter, transitional, and permanent housing programs.

HUD continues to challenge state and local planning organizations called "Continuums of Care" to support their highest performing local programs that have proven most effective in meeting the needs of persons experiencing homelessness in their communities.

“Local agencies across Michigan have worked diligently to end homelessness resulting in nearly a -34.3.3% reduction in overall homelessness since 2010,” said HUD Midwest Regional Administrator Joseph P. Galvan. “We hope to keep the momentum going and are here to support agencies in their tireless efforts to end homelessness as we know it.”

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan said, “HUD has been a great partner in our community-wide efforts to better serve our homeless population and provide more pathways out of homelessness. I am deeply appreciative to Administrator Galvan and the HUD staff for this funding and confidence in our ability to put it to effective use.”

“While we can count the amount of resources the partnership with HUD brings to our community, the impact is immeasurable to people who once slept on the streets, but now have a safe and warm place of their own. These resources are not only a benefit to our community. They changed lives,” said Tasha Gray, Executive Director, Homeless Action Network of Detroit (HAND), the lead agency for the Continuum of Care for Detroit, Hamtramck, and Highland Park.

In 2019, most of the country experienced a combined decrease in homelessness but significant increases in unsheltered and chronic homelessness on the West Coast, particularly California and Oregon, offset those nationwide decreases, causing an overall increase in homelessness of 2.7 percent. HUD's 2019 Annual Homeless Assessment Report to Congress found that 567,715 persons experienced homelessness on a single night in 2019, an increase of 2.7 percent since 2018 but nearly 11 percent decline since 2010. The number of families with children experiencing homelessness declined 5 percent from 2018 and more than 32 percent since 2010. Local communities also reported a continuing trend in reducing veteran homelessness across the country—the number of veterans experiencing homelessness fell 2.1 percent since January 2018 and by 50 percent since 2010.

View a complete list of all the state and local homeless projects.