Those without a roof over their heads in Evanston may be able to find affordable housing from Connections for the Homeless, a local organization that provides services for homeless adults and families.
The Evanston Community Foundation gave Connections a $7,500 grant earlier this fall to work with the Housing Opportunity Development Corporation, a housing agency in the North Shore, to provide more affordable housing options for the homeless and help them develop job skills, said Marybeth Schroeder, senior program officer at the Evanston Community Foundation.
“I don’t think it’s just the issue of homelessness,” Schroeder said. “I think it’s the combination of homelessness and affordable housing. Like much of the U.S., there’s a disconnect between what people make and the cost of housing, both rental and ownership.”
The median rent in Evanston requires a tenant to earn $18 to 20 an hour, said Paul Selden, executive director at Connections. Around 1,000 people spend at least some of the year homeless, and the organization hopes to provide affordable housing at rates below the market rate, allowing tenants to rent a $1,100 apartment for $700 to $800.
“When you have a place you’re living, you can lock the door and shut the world out, that’s your place,” Selden said. “I believe homelessness can be done away with, but it will take combined efforts to allow people to create additional affordable housing and more jobs.”
Evanston’s Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program was implemented last May to prevent people from becoming homeless by paying rent and utilities, as well as subsidizing homeless households so they can find housing, said Alisa Dean, community intervention coordinator for the Community and Economic Development Department. The program has provided services to 66 people so far, Dean said.
“I’m wishing it was a bigger number,” Dean said. “If you could give them affordable housing and they could pay a small portion, it would definitely do a great deed.”
Apart from not having many affordable housing options, Evanston has more services for the homeless than other communities, said Susan Murphy, administrative director of Interfaith Action, which runs soup kitchens and provides employment counseling for the homeless.
Providing affordable housing may help but will not solve the homeless problem, said Vania Leung, Weinberg ’10, who volunteered with Northwestern Community Development Corps for four years and was a site leader at Connections.
“It will alleviate but not necessarily solve the problem of poverty,” Leung said. “I think poverty is a big issue that’s not just about finding housing for people.”
Leung cited the example of a Nigerian man who came to the U.S. for law school. His father at home became ill and could no longer support himself financially, Leung said.
“Because he wasn’t a citizen, he couldn’t get a job, had to quit law school, became homeless and came to the shelter,” Leung said. “Housing will help, but the issue of poverty is vast.”
