Bowser Spreads the Wealth opens homeless shelters in each DC ward

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:The Bowser administration just sent a bunch of documents related to the shelters to the Council which put them online. The leases are all there:

http://lims.dccouncil.us/Legislation/B21-0620?FromSearchResults=true

Click the "Other Documents" tab.

The lease on the Wisconsin Ave. location is 15 years.

Thanks for posting. Wow that is outrageous that the monthly cost of a "unit" without a bathroom or a kitchen costs this much. They could have a full apartment for that much.

I was referring to the $3500 per month for the Wisconsin Ave location.

$3500 a month is way too much.

Coupled with a 15 year term, that would cover the complete mortgage on a half million dollar house for every homeless family in DC. That'd be a nicer place than what we can currently afford.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:The Bowser administration just sent a bunch of documents related to the shelters to the Council which put them online. The leases are all there:

http://lims.dccouncil.us/Legislation/B21-0620?FromSearchResults=true

Click the "Other Documents" tab.

The lease on the Wisconsin Ave. location is 15 years.

Thanks for posting. Wow that is outrageous that the monthly cost of a "unit" without a bathroom or a kitchen costs this much. They could have a full apartment for that much.

I was referring to the $3500 per month for the Wisconsin Ave location.

And it is not even an apartment! It's a unit without private bathrooms, which for people with little kiddies that are potty training to use the bathroom at nighttime, that is unsafe unless they get up every time with the child. This is outrageous.

$3500 a month is way too much.

Coupled with a 15 year term, that would cover the complete mortgage on a half million dollar house for every homeless family in DC. That'd be a nicer place than what we can currently afford.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

jsteele wrote:The Bowser administration just sent a bunch of documents related to the shelters to the Council which put them online. The leases are all there:

http://lims.dccouncil.us/Legislation/B21-0620?FromSearchResults=true

Click the "Other Documents" tab.

The lease on the Wisconsin Ave. location is 15 years.

Thanks for posting. Wow that is outrageous that the monthly cost of a "unit" without a bathroom or a kitchen costs this much. They could have a full apartment for that much.

I was referring to the $3500 per month for the Wisconsin Ave location.

And it is not even an apartment! It's a unit without private bathrooms, which for people with little kiddies that are potty training to use the bathroom at nighttime, that is unsafe unless they get up every time with the child. This is outrageous.

$3500 a month is way too much.

Coupled with a 15 year term, that would cover the complete mortgage on a half million dollar house for every homeless family in DC. That'd be a nicer place than what we can currently afford.

And it is not even an apartment! It's a unit without private bathrooms, which for people with little kiddies that are potty training to use the bathroom at nighttime, that is unsafe unless they get up every time with the child. This is outrageous.

[Anonymous]

So.much money is spent on services in dc! Wed be better off cutting out middleman and giving needy folks a check. Maybe they'd use it to pay for daycare and get a job . Maybe.

[Anonymous]

The illustration in the NW Current of the Cathedral Heights site looks like a post-Modern barracks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:http://ich.dc.gov

Start your journey here. Read about the homeless situation in DC as well as the game plan to address it.

Recognize that you have well over 1,000 homeless families in DC (and that's likely a lower estimate than reality since it's based on the point in time count). Recognize that there are well over 2,000 homeless kids in DC. These families must live somewhere. These children must go to school somewhere.

I realize that some of you feel like you worked hard to afford your nice home and good school. That's fine. But you live in DC, and DC has a homeless family housing crisis. Fortunately, the mayor is doing her best to address the problem (whereas many communities simply ignore the problem and waste so much money on emergency responses and services like shelters, ambulances, ER visits, etc.).

Data proves that the best practice is to disperse families in need of assistance throughout the community as opposed to segregating them in the poorest neighborhoods.

The bottom line is this: if you don't like it, then you can leave. Move WOTP. Move into a gated community in the burbs. Nobody will make you stay. It just seems so odd to me that city folk are getting hysterical over this. I mean, you live in DC...a city with a homeless family housing crisis...what do you expect? If you want a homogenous neighborhood, then look elsewhere.

I'm sure someone will say, "Why should we leave? We bought our home and want to stay!" That's fine. You can stay. Nobody will make you leave. But please realize that these families are lifetime DC residents. They aren't transplants. Their DC roots run deep...generations. They can't leave because they have nowhere to go. These are people suffering the effects of generational poverty. They've been failed by the education system. They've been failed by the child welfare system. Their communities have been over-policed, they've been criminalized (and so have their parents, brothers and sisters), and they are saddled with court imposed fines and debt that propel them into a never ending cycle of crisis. They live in a world that you can't even begin to comprehend. It's beyond sad. It's a rather hopeless existence.

Having worked in this arena for two decades, I count my blessings everyday because I realize that my life has a great deal to do with the fact that the deck wasn't stacked against me when I was born into a two-parent home with loving, well-educated, healthy, mentally stable, employed parents who themselves had a well-resourced family network. And I focus my career and pro bono work on do

ing whatever I can to try to improve the system for those who unfortunately entered the world with the cards stacked against them.

I honestly think that you'll be pleasantly surprised when you realize these plans ultimately have zero impact on your lives. I truly believe that.


You make some good points but you are are wrong to assume the homeless are lifelong residents. It's well known that homeless folks make their way to DC from MD and VA because DC has laws requiring housing. Police officers and others in public service will even advise homeless folks to get to the district. We have a huge problem but we are also inducing demand and homeless folks are purposely coming to DC. And they mayor has yet to address where all the families will go after their 90 days is up I these temporary shelters. How will she address mental illness, addiction, generational poverty, illiteracy etc in
, in such a short time. These are the questions we should be asking.

Most are lifelong residents.

DC, MoCo and PG are cooperating on a regional approach to address homelessness. Google it.

You must be a resident in order to access services. That's a fact. You can't just show up a get housing.
(The only possible exception being Covenant House for youth.)

How does a homeless person prove residency? and you are wrong, if a homeless families shows inside DC borders the law requires that DC provide emergency shelter. there is no tangible regional approach to this as DC is the only one that legally mandates housing for homeless families. ANd then we end up housing most of them back in the hotels in suburbs. If this is cooperation we need to start fresh.

I'll bite ... they can establish residency with a driver's licence or another form of government identification.

What do you think DC will do if the person says they have no government ID but their family lives in DC and they need temporary shelter? Just refuse them?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
In related news...is this true?

"The city estimates there were 1,311 homeless families in 2015, a sharp rise from 800 six years ago."
http://www.thegeorgetowndish.com/thedish/planned-shelter-sites-spark-initial-debate

I don't know if it is true, but it's certainly the case that, if your city has the most/best free housing in the greater area, more people who want or need free housing will find their way to your city.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
In related news...is this true?

"The city estimates there were 1,311 homeless families in 2015, a sharp rise from 800 six years ago."
http://www.thegeorgetowndish.com/thedish/planned-shelter-sites-spark-initial-debate

I don't know if it is true, but it's certainly the case that, if your city has the most/best free housing in the greater area, more people who want or need free housing will find their way to your city.

Have there been any studies on how they became homeless? Did they loose jobs? Kicked out of areas that became too expensive? What are the statics on the families? These numbers are terrible and obviously we need to do something about it. However, so we can prevent it we need to know what has happened in the last few years in DC to make our numbers increase 40%? I am not being facetious or a jerk - I am really trying to figure it out because these numbers are terrible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:http://ich.dc.gov

Start your journey here. Read about the homeless situation in DC as well as the game plan to address it.

Recognize that you have well over 1,000 homeless families in DC (and that's likely a lower estimate than reality since it's based on the point in time count). Recognize that there are well over 2,000 homeless kids in DC. These families must live somewhere. These children must go to school somewhere.

I realize that some of you feel like you worked hard to afford your nice home and good school. That's fine. But you live in DC, and DC has a homeless family housing crisis. Fortunately, the mayor is doing her best to address the problem (whereas many communities simply ignore the problem and waste so much money on emergency responses and services like shelters, ambulances, ER visits, etc.).

Data proves that the best practice is to disperse families in need of assistance throughout the community as opposed to segregating them in the poorest neighborhoods.

The bottom line is this: if you don't like it, then you can leave. Move WOTP. Move into a gated community in the burbs. Nobody will make you stay. It just seems so odd to me that city folk are getting hysterical over this. I mean, you live in DC...a city with a homeless family housing crisis...what do you expect? If you want a homogenous neighborhood, then look elsewhere.

I'm sure someone will say, "Why should we leave? We bought our home and want to stay!" That's fine. You can stay. Nobody will make you leave. But please realize that these families are lifetime DC residents. They aren't transplants. Their DC roots run deep...generations. They can't leave because they have nowhere to go. These are people suffering the effects of generational poverty. They've been failed by the education system. They've been failed by the child welfare system. Their communities have been over-policed, they've been criminalized (and so have their parents, brothers and sisters), and they are saddled with court imposed fines and debt that propel them into a never ending cycle of crisis. They live in a world that you can't even begin to comprehend. It's beyond sad. It's a rather hopeless existence.

Having worked in this arena for two decades, I count my blessings everyday because I realize that my life has a great deal to do with the fact that the deck wasn't stacked against me when I was born into a two-parent home with loving, well-educated, healthy, mentally stable, employed parents who themselves had a well-resourced family network. And I focus my career and pro bono work on do

ing whatever I can to try to improve the system for those who unfortunately entered the world with the cards stacked against them.

I honestly think that you'll be pleasantly surprised when you realize these plans ultimately have zero impact on your lives. I truly believe that.


You make some good points but you are are wrong to assume the homeless are lifelong residents. It's well known that homeless folks make their way to DC from MD and VA because DC has laws requiring housing. Police officers and others in public service will even advise homeless folks to get to the district. We have a huge problem but we are also inducing demand and homeless folks are purposely coming to DC. And they mayor has yet to address where all the families will go after their 90 days is up I these temporary shelters. How will she address mental illness, addiction, generational poverty, illiteracy etc in
, in such a short time. These are the questions we should be asking.

Most are lifelong residents.

DC, MoCo and PG are cooperating on a regional approach to address homelessness. Google it.

You must be a resident in order to access services. That's a fact. You can't just show up a get housing.
(The only possible exception being Covenant House for youth.)

How does a homeless person prove residency? and you are wrong, if a homeless families shows inside DC borders the law requires that DC provide emergency shelter. there is no tangible regional approach to this as DC is the only one that legally mandates housing for homeless families. ANd then we end up housing most of them back in the hotels in suburbs. If this is cooperation we need to start fresh.

I'll bite ... they can establish residency with a driver's licence or another form of government identification.

What do you think DC will do if the person says they have no government ID but their family lives in DC and they need temporary shelter? Just refuse them?

Caseworkers do their damnedest to divert.

Where did you last live?

Can they take you back?

Do you have a relative you can stay with?

Let's talk to your relatives. Can we pay Aunt Sue $300/month to let you stay with her?

Will grandma in NC let you stay with her? If she will accept you, we will buy you bus tickets.

They don't just hand everyone a key to an apartment. They try hard to screen and redirect them.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
In related news...is this true?

"The city estimates there were 1,311 homeless families in 2015, a sharp rise from 800 six years ago."
http://www.thegeorgetowndish.com/thedish/planned-shelter-sites-spark-initial-debate

I don't know if it is true, but it's certainly the case that, if your city has the most/best free housing in the greater area, more people who want or need free housing will find their way to your city.

You mean, homeless people have brains ????????

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:So.much money is spent on services in dc! Wed be better off cutting out middleman and giving needy folks a check. Maybe they'd use it to pay for daycare and get a job . Maybe.

Can't find cites now but remember grad school, reading studies indicating cash transfers are most effective.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:So.much money is spent on services in dc! Wed be better off cutting out middleman and giving needy folks a check. Maybe they'd use it to pay for daycare and get a job . Maybe.

Can't find cites now but remember grad school, reading studies indicating cash transfers are most effective.

Conditional cash transfers, like the Bolsa Familia in Brazil, tied to positive behaviors by parents and kids

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
In related news...is this true?

"The city estimates there were 1,311 homeless families in 2015, a sharp rise from 800 six years ago."
http://www.thegeorgetowndish.com/thedish/planned-shelter-sites-spark-initial-debate

I don't know if it is true, but it's certainly the case that, if your city has the most/best free housing in the greater area, more people who want or need free housing will find their way to your city.

Have there been any studies on how they became homeless? Did they loose jobs? Kicked out of areas that became too expensive? What are the statics on the families? These numbers are terrible and obviously we need to do something about it. However, so we can prevent it we need to know what has happened in the last few years in DC to make our numbers increase 40%? I am not being facetious or a jerk - I am really trying to figure it out because these numbers are terrible.

Google is your friend.

http://www.dcfpi.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Going-Going-Gone-Rent-Burden-Final-3-6-15format-v2-3-10-15.pdf


http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post/26526/dcs-housing-affordability-crisis-in-7-charts/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Warehouses or abandoned buildings? Those are not designed for human habitation. You're talking about major renovations, asking for there to be major delays.

Asbestos abatement. Rodent proofing. Fire and building code compliance (e.g., exterior doors and windows for each bedroom), CofO.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
In related news...is this true?

"The city estimates there were 1,311 homeless families in 2015, a sharp rise from 800 six years ago."
http://www.thegeorgetowndish.com/thedish/planned-shelter-sites-spark-initial-debate

I don't know if it is true, but it's certainly the case that, if your city has the most/best free housing in the greater area, more people who want or need free housing will find their way to your city.

You mean, homeless people have brains ????????

A few years back, in a different town, when I lived in a poor section of town, a lady who lived next door on Section 8 subsidy was sitting out on her porch drinking one night, and she told me all about her deal in quite a bit of detail - it was her, two boyfriends (though one was in jail on assault charges), her 3 kids, and her sister - they were all involved in doing residency fraud and false identities in multiple jurisdictions, collecting every benefit they could, lying to social workers about living arrangements and support, bartering away benefits so that they could get beer money, misrepresenting their situation, all kinds of stuff. They were all in their 20s, none of them had worked a real job in years, other than the other boyfriend selling weed and other hustles on the side. They did nothing but party. I'm not saying all folks are like that and in fact most of them aren't, but there are definitely some grifters out there who would think nothing of lying, cheating and deceiving in order to get a free apartment. It was also common practice for cops to pick up homeless folks and put them on a bus with a one-way ticket to a town that was "more amenable to the homeless." This stuff happens.