City getting more folks off streets

May 8—Sometimes it's hard to imagine that in a city bursting with luxurious homes and gated communities and where the biggest debate is over road renovations, Scottsdale has people living below the poverty line — with some sleeping in parks and other public places.

According to the most recent U.S Census figures, the median value of a Scottsdale home is $540,000, about 75% higher than the Maricopa County median. The median monthly rent in 2021 was $1,578 — likely much higher after rental spikes around the Valley in the last two years.

Scottsdale's median household income was just under $100,000, nearly 40% higher than the county average.

And, though it is about 75% lower than the county percentage in otherwise thriving and wealthy Scottsdale, 6.7% of the city's population is at or below the poverty line.

"The veneer of wealth can be pretty thin," Councilwoman Solange Whitehead said.

Indeed, in a city where a "housing crisis" often means a social media post by someone who just got a job in Scottsdale and needs a place for "under $4,000 per month," there are people without a roof over their heads.

But Scottsdale is making progress.

Even as unsheltered populations are on the rise in other affluent parts of the Valley, a county-wide survey suggests Scottsdale is succeeding in helping people find housing.

In many cases, the quick solution is a temporary shelter — but that is almost without fail better than sleeping in a park or next to a library.

Over the last five years, Scottsdale has successfully funneled millions of federal dollars to help people move from parks to shelters — and then to permanent homes.

The annual "Point in Time" survey of homeless people around Maricopa County showed Scottsdale bucking a four-year trend: Fewer people were unsheltered here.

According to the Maricopa Association of Governments, "Every January, volunteers and outreach teams from local communities collaborate to survey and count the number of people experiencing homelessness in their respective locations."

The data acquired by the PIT Count is used by the county and municipalities in applying U.S. Housing and Urban Development grants and helps the Maricopa Regional Continuum of Care and local communities to address homelessness.

Volunteers counted 64 unsheltered people in Scottsdale this year — nearly half the 114 counted last year.

Though the county total of 4,908 unsheltered people was down slightly from last year's count of 5,029, the 2023 figure is 30% higher than the 3,767 counted in 2020. There was no count in 2021, due to COVID-19.

In 2019, the last count before the pandemic, there were 3,188 unsheltered people in the county.

In Scottsdale, 102 unsheltered people were counted in 2020 and 76 in 2019 — so this year's count is lower than pre-pandemic totals.

In Phoenix, pandemic-caused homelessness was particularly dramatic, with the count rising from 2,030 in 2019 to 3,333 this year — a 52% increase..

Scottsdale and Glendale were the only two cities in the county with populations larger than 100,000 that bucked the trend with a homeless count decline since 2019.

In neighboring Tempe, volunteers counted 406 unsheltered people this year, up from 384 last year.

Affluent Gilbert had only 17 unsheltered people this year, according to the PIT count — but that was an increase over 15 homeless people in 2022 and nine in 2020.

And Chandler's homeless population doubled since the pandemic, with the unsheltered count rising from 54 in 2019 to 115 in 2023. Similarly, Mesa's homeless count spiked during the pandemic, rising from 206 in 2019 to 366 this year.

"Scottsdale has had a very high rate of success at transitioning people out of homelessness and catching people before they fall out of homes," Whitehead said.

She said she volunteers at a senior center regularly sees older folks who are struggling to meet rocketing rents. "We are looking at keeping them housed," she said.

Though she was happy to hear about the drop in unsheltered people counted in Scottsdale, Whitehead said she was not surprised.

"I'm out at all hours and I've seen a decrease (in homeless people). I ride my bike all over the city," Whitehead said.

She added that she has met unsheltered people with college degrees, "yet something happened.

"I found someone at a bus stop when it was 115 degrees two years ago. He was an older gentleman. I pulled over and offered him a ride and I took him where he was going — he told me he was homeless," Whitehead said.

"He said he didn't drink or do drugs. He was just a middle-class guy who had bad luck and he'd been homeless for three or four years."

Whitehead alerted the city's homeless outreach team, who found the man, helped him fill out paperwork for rent assistance and ultimately helped him get out of the parks.

"I get a card from him once a year," Whitehead said. "He has an apartment and lives in Flagstaff."

At its May 2 meeting, Scottsdale City Council approved a recommendation on how to spend $1.2 million in federal, housing-assistance funding from July 1 to June 30, 2024.

The money is provided by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Community Development Block Grant.

According to program guidelines, a minimum of 70% of the funds must benefit low- and- moderate- income households.

Federal funds are targeted at those with income below 80% of the area median.

Nonprofits around the Valley pitch Scottsdale (as well as other cities) on how they can help people living in poverty to obtain temporary or stable housing.

Among the recipients of Scottsdale's 2023-24 housing money:

—A New Leaf Men' s Homeless Shelter — $27,000.

—Central Arizona Shelter Services — $16,000.

—Chrysalis Shelter for Victims of Domestic Violence — $11,732.

—City of Scottsdale Adolescent Community Mental Health Services — $91,266.

—Family Promise Greater Phoenix Emergency Shelter Program — $ 30,898.

—City of Scottsdale/ Habitat For Humanity Emergency Repair Program — $300,000.

—City of Scottsdale Roof Replacement and Repair Program — $250,000.

—Affordable Rental Movement Save the Family Program — $269,000.

—City of Scottsdale Tenant Based Rental Assistance — $355,614.

The Affordable Rental Movement of Save the Family will acquire and rehabilitate one 3- bedroom single-family home within ZIP codes 85257, 85258 or 85260 for transitional housing.

The city received $2.5 million in housing-assistance pandemic funds "to prepare for, prevent and respond to the coronavirus."

Mary Witkofski, the city's Community Assistance manager, gave a presentation on the spending plan to City Council and Councilwoman Tammy Caputi wondered why Scottsdale doesn't receive more than $1 million or so to help homeless and low-income folks.

The funding, Witkofski answered, is based on population size.

City Manager Jim Thompson added that Scottsdale has limited federal funding because the city is not qualified as a "blighted community," with only small areas of the city qualifying for funding assistance.

"I find the use of money very efficient," Mayor David Ortega added.

"You're doing a fantastic job," Councilwoman Kathy Littlefield told Witkofski. "I'm very thrilled with what you're doing."