Regional Council Revitalized to Strengthen Response to Homelessness

ALBUQUERQUE – The City of Albuquerque is revitalizing the Homeless Coordinating Council to bring regional partners together around a shared goal: reducing homelessness and helping more people move into permanent housing.

The council will focus on aligning resources, strengthening coordination across five key partners and develop a five-year regional strategy focused on preventing homelessness, expanding access to services, and delivering measurable results.

At the council’s Oct. 8 meeting, Mayor Tim Keller was elected Chair, with Bernalillo County Commissioner Adriann Barboa serving as Vice Chair. The HCC includes the City of Albuquerque, Bernalillo County, Albuquerque Public Schools, the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center, and the New Mexico Veterans Affairs Healthcare System.

“Homelessness is too big a challenge for any one agency to tackle alone. We need everyone pulling in the same direction, focused on what works and accountable for results,” said Mayor Tim Keller. “We’ve made significant investments in shelter, behavioral health and affordable housing, now we’re strengthening the connections between them.”

The council will track progress against specific goals, including reducing the number of people living unsheltered, helping people move out of homelessness faster, increasing placements in permanent housing, and preventing people from falling back into homelessness. The HCC will also work to share data more effectively, identify gaps in services, and make better-informed decisions about where resources are needed, while protecting personal and confidential information.

The effort builds on work already underway. The City’s Gateway System of Care offers 1,200+ emergency shelter and specialized beds and serves more than 7,000 people annually. City housing assistance programs help more than 1,500 people each year access housing. Bernalillo County has expanded behavioral health care, supportive housing and homelessness prevention efforts, while UNM Health Sciences has strengthened addiction treatment, crisis response and behavioral health services.

At the Oct. 8 meeting, the Council also established three committees focused on prevention, services, and housing. The committees will meet every other month to improve coordination and expand access to services.

Over the next year, the council will develop a regional action plan outlining strategies for prevention, services, and housing, along with ways to better coordinate funding and resources.

The public is invited to comment on the HCC website:
https://www.cabq.gov/health-housing-homelessness/transparency/meeting-minutes-agendas/homeless-coordinating-council/homeless-coordinating-council-public-feedback-form

The ultimate measure of success will be fewer unsheltered people, a reduction in returns to homelessness, increased access to permanent housing, and increased coordination across the five partners.

The next meeting of the HCC will be in early December.