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Shenandoah Valley homeless count conducted Jan. 22

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The Western Virginia Continuum of Care will conduct the annual Point-in-Time homeless count on Wednesday, Jan. 22.

Agencies and volunteers will canvas the community to count and survey individuals who are unsheltered (in cars, abandoned buildings, and tent cities, i.e.) and staying in homeless shelters in the area.

In the southern region of the CoC, the survey will include the City of Harrisonburg and Rockingham County.

In the 2019 Point-in-Time count, the CoC identified 132 homeless individuals in Harrisonburg and Rockingham. Of those 132, 28 of them were children. Nine persons were found living unsheltered in a place not fit for habitation. More information may be found on the CoC website: https://continuumofcare513.com/point-in-time-count-data/

The Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) is required by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to obtain a count of the number of homeless persons or families in Virginia.

HUD funds programs in Virginia that serve the homeless. Continued funding from HUD for homeless programs throughout Virginia is contingent upon efforts to collect data on homeless persons. The Point-in-Time is just one method used to collect an estimated number of people who are without housing, and must follow strict HUD guidelines about who to include. So individuals who live in motels are not included in the Point-in-Time count, but are identified in the American Housing Survey, for example.

More information about the Continuum of Care and the Housing Needs Survey that homeless individuals will be asked to complete, please visit www.ContinuumOfCare513.com and https://www.data513.com.

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