Homeless numbers in Penticton twice previous estimate

PENTICTON – The number of homeless people is double what a Penticton advocacy group for the city’s homeless originally estimated.

Delivering a progress report for the 100 Homes Penticton initiative, Ian Gerbrandt with the United Way told city council yesterday, Dec. 20, the campaign to provide housing and support to 100 people by July, 2018 met with 128 people who were homeless in the city, more than double the 60 an informal count calculated last year.

Gerbrandt said 203 people have registered with the initiative for supportive housing, with 41 of those already successfully matched for a place to live.

One of the group’s goals was to put a name to every homeless person in the city, using volunteers from 13 organizations who fanned out across Penticton to document every person without a roof over their heads.

Here are some of the statistics about the city's homeless population the group provided city council:

• 71 per cent are male
• 29 per cent are female
• 24 per cent identify as aboriginal
• 54 per cent are between 45- to 65-years-old
• 86 per cent have a mental health condition
• 87 per cent have a medical condition
• 83 per cent have a substance abuse issue
• 47 per cent are chronically homeless (people homeless for more than a year or homeless at least four times in the last three years)

The 100 Homes Penticton campaign is part of a national campaign to provide housing and support to the homeless. Penticton is the fourth municipality in B.C. to join the campaign.

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