Spartanburg County targets homelessness with $2.1M federal HOME-ARPA funds
Spartanburg County is planning to spend $2.1 million in federal grant money to address homelessness and a lack of shelter space.
County Council on Monday approved the HOME-American Rescue Plan Grant Allocation Plan that was presented by Kathy Rivers, director of Community Development.
Rivers told County Council that an online survey completed in June resulted in 21 responses, including those from homeless services providers, affordable housing developers, domestic violence advocacy groups and veterans groups.
A lack of affordable housing was cited as the greatest need, according to the responses.
One responder, Spartanburg Interfaith Hospitality Network (SPIHN), provided this feedback: "Unmet needs: Safe places for homeless people to sleep. Much more robust and experienced case management services. Critical need for mental health and counseling support. Critical need for addiction detox services.
"Affordable transitional housing," the responder added. "Permanent supportive housing. Experienced case managers with mental health backgrounds are desperately needed. Operations funding for shelter programs and supportive services is also needed. "
Rivers said her plan recommends spending $1.3 million to build seven affordable rental housing units. Another $500,000 was allocated for support services and $318,366 for administration and planning.
Councilwoman Jessica Coker said she wanted some of the $1.3 million for rental housing to be transferred to education, which falls under support services. The rest of the council agreed, and Rivers said she would move $250,000 of that money toward education/counseling.
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Black people experiencing the most homelessness
According to the 2020 Upstate Continuum of Care Point-In-Time count tally included in Rivers' plan, 277 people were identified as homeless in the county, yet there was an inventory of only 188 units and beds.
"Males are much more likely to be homeless than females," Rivers' grant allocation plan states. "The majority of persons were reported as single-person households; about 20 percent were adults with children.
"Black or African American residents are the largest demographic of people experiencing homelessness. Over 54 percent of people experiencing homelessness are Black or African American. Eighteen veterans were identified as homeless during the count. One hundred fifty-four households were in emergency shelters, 12 were in transitional housing and 35 unsheltered. Lastly, 58 homeless persons were survivors or were fleeing domestic violence."
According to the same 2020 homeless count, 201 people in the city of Spartanburg were experiencing homelessness. The true number is likely three to four times higher than that, city officials stated.
Among support services, the plan states there is "a critical need for mental health and counseling support.
"Experienced case managers with mental health backgrounds are desperately needed," the plan states. "Operations funding for shelter programs and supportive services is also needed."
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Rivers said the HOME-ARP funds are separate from the allocations to the city and county under the $1.9 trillion COVID-19 American Rescue Plan package signed into law last year by President Biden.
South Carolina was allocated $65.1 billion to distribute to counties and cities. Spartanburg County's allocation is $62.1 million, and the City of Spartanburg received $16.5 million.
The city and county have held public input meetings, but no decisions on how to spend those funds have been made yet.
Contact Bob Montgomery at bob.montgomery@shj.com. Please support our coverage of Spartanburg County with a digital subscription.
This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: Spartanburg County targets homelessness with HOME-ARPA federal funds
