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Count Shows Homelessness on the Decline in Kentucky

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The number of homeless across Kentucky is declining. That’s according to statistics released last week by the Kentucky Housing Corporation. The point-in-time figures for 118 counties refer to a count conducted last January. 

Housing Corporation Program Planning Manager Shaye Rabold says further reductions in the numbers of homeless will be dependent on services and not just structures, “In order to prevent and end homelessness, we need a lot of different options to be able to serve people with a variety of barriers, because they are certainly not always the same.”

The count identified 2,057 homeless men, women, and children. That’s down 62 from a year before.

Rabold says the ongoing goal of ending homelessness doesn’t mean eliminating it entirely, “When we say end homelessness, we’re referring more towards having a support services system, a housing that is able to act quickly.”

While the numbers indicate a position trend, Rabond says, homelessness remains a significant concern. Rabold says the “housing first” model of getting homeless off the streets into stable housing and then complementing with needed services is seen in many parts of Kentucky.

The figures don’t include Lexington and Louisville which conduct their own counts.?

Stu Johnson is a reporter/producer at WEKU in Lexington, Kentucky.
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