Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2003. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Chicago Tribune - December 23, 2003
Gary Washburn, Tribune staff reporter
Most of the money, $33 million, represents grants to provide transitional and permanent housing for the homeless and to offer a range of social services designed to prevent their return to the streets.
Mayor Richard Daley earlier this year announced a 10-year plan to end homelessness in Chicago by limiting emphasis on shelters and concentrating on permanent housing.
Services for those placed in permanent residences, considered a key element of the program, include such assistance as job training, mental health counseling, drug and alcohol abuse treatment and child care.
President Bush has announced a similar 10-year plan for the nation.
Shelters "are not the answer," Daley said at a news conference at the Renaissance Apartments, a former YMCA at 3757 S. Wabash Ave., that was converted into an affordable single-room occupancy residence. "You have to rebuild people's lives" for them to remain housed, he said.
Nearly $3.8 million of the grant money, which had been expected and was included in the city's 2004 budget, will be used to convert buildings into emergency homeless shelters and to help provide social services at existing shelters.
Meanwhile, an additional $9.5 million has been awarded to assist Chicagoans living with AIDS, said Roy Bernardi, assistant secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, who appeared with Daley at the news conference.
Of that, $8.3 million is earmarked for providing permanent housing and social services to people who have HIV and AIDS and to their families. The remainder will provide 187 long-term rental subsidies to people with HIV/AIDS who have had unstable housing situations. They will be part of a research project designed to determine the influence of housing on health and risk behavior.
The federal government is providing nearly $1.3 billion in grants nationally for homeless programs, up from $1.1 billion last year. Homeless advocates have applauded the increase but contend that much more money is needed to accomplish Bush's goal to end homelessness in a decade.
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