Department of Planning
Print this page.
 

A Plan to End Homelessness

We heartily thank everyone who participated in the charrette planning process held in late October, 2010, to support the development of draft recommendations that will support a 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness in Baltimore County. We believe the process was truly inspiring and productive, and we look forward to continuing the effort. The recommendations from the charrette are being reviewed by county agencies and other stakeholders. We will be releasing written materials from the charrette process after the review period. For immediate questions, please contact Sue Bull, our homeless services coordinator, 410-887-2886.

A specialized planning process – known as a “charrette” – was used from October 20 to October 25 to foster public input and to bring a diversity of voices to the effort to craft recommendations for the 10-Year plan to End Homelessness. A charrette is an intense, multi-day planning session designed to include collaboration and feedback while striving for consensus in support of solutions to a challenging problem. The charrette featured an inter-disciplinary team of experts on homelessness whose members crafted initial recommendations for the plan.

Managing Services for the Homeless

Government Role     

Two Baltimore County agencies – the Division of Neighborhood Improvement and the Department of Social Services (DSS) – have the primary responsibility for providing services to the homeless, or those who are at risk of becoming homeless. Neighborhood Improvement employs a Homeless Services Coordinator as well as a manager of what is called the Homeless Management Information System (HMIS).

The Office of Neighborhood Improvement also employs a team of grants administrators who, among other duties, oversee significant annual grant funding that goes to various organizations that provide services to the homeless and work to prevent homelessness. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is a major provider of this funding.

Our Partners 

Baltimore County government works in partnership with several organizations striving to prevent homelessness and manage services to the homeless. A select list of our partners includes:

Tracking the Problem

The Office of Neighborhood Improvement gathers data from various sources to estimate the extent of homelessness in the County. We currently estimate that approximately 5,000 distinct individuals contacted a County organization in 2009 to seek assistance because they were homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.

Neighborhood Improvement recently completed its annual Point-in-Time Survey of the homeless for 2010. This one-day effort obtains a “snapshot” in time count of homeless people in the county. This one measure, which is required by HUD, returned a count of 890 people on January 28.

Shelter and Housing Facilities 

People who are seeking access to the shelters and housing facilities listed below must be referred to those facilities by a qualified placement agency. Call 410-853-3000 if you are seeking shelter for yourself or to aid another person.

Emergency Shelters

Baltimore County has four facilities that provide emergency shelter for people who would otherwise be homeless. The emergency shelters provide approximately 353 beds. Neighborhood Improvement maintains an active management oversight role in the case of the three largest shelters. Neighborhood Improvement allocates annual grant funding to a non-profit provider, in this case the Community Assistance Network (CAN), which manages the shelters’ day-to-day operations. These shelters are:

  • Eastside Family Shelter – Rosedale
    Emergency shelter beds for 150 families. Residents receive dinner and breakfast as well as laundry and shower facilities. Day programs are provided by the Young Parent Support center and include classes for case management, GED, job skills, child development and recreational activities.
  • West Side Shelter – Catonsville
    Emergency shelter beds for 100 men. Residents receive dinner and breakfast as well as laundry and shower facilities. Supportive services provided by Lazarus Caucus and include support with id’s, birth certificates, transportation, clothing, and meal coordination.
  • Hannah More Shelter – Reisterstown
    Emergency shelter beds for 75 women and children. Residents receive dinner and breakfast as well as laundry and shower facilities. Case management, parenting classes, housing and budget counseling, life skills classes.
  • Night of Peace Overnight Shelter – Woodlawn (The County has less involved management relationship with one additional emergency shelter)
    Located at Salem United Methodist Church, Randallstown, Maryland. It is an overnight shelter for families with beds for 28 individuals. Residents receive dinner and breakfast as well as laundry and shower facilities. Private cubicles equipped with mattresses and storage closets are provided for each family.

Domestic Violence Shelters

  • Family Crisis Center
    Domestic Violence Shelter for 48 women and children. Thirty day stay with services including therapy, court accompaniment, meals, and various other services to help residents gain permanent housing and independence. Transitional housing available for eight women and children.
  • Turn Around, Inc.
    Domestic Violence Shelter for 19 women and children. Women and their children may stay up to two years and receive many services to help them become stable and move out into independence. Services include therapy, job searches, budgeting, child care, etc.

Transitional Housing

  • INNterim Housing Corporation Transitional Housing for women and children.
  • INNterim Apartments
    Transitional shelter for 20 women and their children in 20 apartments (primarily one bedroom).
  • INNterim House
    Transitional shelter for nine women and their children in nine units. In both locations, there is common space for meetings, offices, lobby, laundry rooms, and playrooms. Residents may stay for up to two years while they work on such goals as employment, financial stability, child care, education, etc. to help them obtain permanent housing. Services provided are case management, tutoring for the children, parenting skills, employment and housing assistance, and counseling.

Revised December 21, 2011 

Was This Page Helpful?
Page Rating*