Topeka conducts annual homeless count, but the work doesn't stop there

Keishera Lately, Topeka Capital-Journal
·4 min read
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Matt Baldwin, a homeless outreach case manager for Valeo Behavioral Health, helps a woman living in a camp off S.E. 15th Street and Adams, walk up a muddy hill to complete a point-in-time survey and receive supplies Wednesday afternoon. Baldwin says the camp has become a hotspot for those without housing in recent months.
Matt Baldwin, a homeless outreach case manager for Valeo Behavioral Health, helps a woman living in a camp off S.E. 15th Street and Adams, walk up a muddy hill to complete a point-in-time survey and receive supplies Wednesday afternoon. Baldwin says the camp has become a hotspot for those without housing in recent months.

Low wind chills and 1.1 inches of overnight snow greeted city of Topeka employees and volunteers from sunrise to sunset Wednesday as they counted individuals experiencing homelessness in the capital city.

The United States Department of Housing requires a count each year to ensure cities can obtain appropriate funding needed to provide programs and other needed services for individuals experiencing homelessness.

"I think it's important to remember that this is a snapshot," said Kimberly Williams-Gatson, supervisor of homeless programming at Valeo Behavioral Health Care.

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Williams-Gatson said the snowfall creates an easier process to count homeless individuals, because one is better able to "see their footprints" and determine if they are present in their camps.

"It's also an issue, because you can see a lot more of their camps," she said. "It alerts more people to what's really going on, but it's really been there all the time."

Last year's Jan. 26, point-in-time count showed an increase in the percentage of the city's homeless population. Results showed "365 people were experiencing homelessness that day in Topeka, compared to 298 during the count conducted in January of 2021."

Typically, total homeless numbers for a new year's count won't be available for about two months.

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More counting teams out than years prior for annual count

Efforts to assist the homeless population have included launching the Equal Access Shelter in November 2022, a "one-stop shop" providing a single point of access for those needing rental help, along with launching MAP in 2021 — a mobile access partnership that provides shower, bathroom and laundry access for the homeless population.

Kent Ivey, a homeless man in Topeka, was housed until November 2022 but lost it due to unforeseen circumstances. Ivey previously lived in the once prominent Tent City in North Topeka. The city cleared Tent City on April 4 and May 10 in 2022.

"Since COVID, things are OK but before that, if you went hungry, you were messed up," Ivey said.

After the demolition of Tent City, homeless individuals spread across the city. On Wednesday, 10 zoning teams were out counting individuals, which was "more than normal" said Williams-Gatson. Generally, seven or eight teams are formed.

Trauma shared within the homeless community, means there's still work to be done

Matt Baldwin, a homeless outreach case manager for Valeo Behavioral Health, fist-bumps Kent Ivey, an unhoused man originally from Oklahoma, after promising he'll help him get into permanent housing and out of his camp near the Shunga Creek.
Matt Baldwin, a homeless outreach case manager for Valeo Behavioral Health, fist-bumps Kent Ivey, an unhoused man originally from Oklahoma, after promising he'll help him get into permanent housing and out of his camp near the Shunga Creek.

Matt Baldwin, homeless outreach case manager for Valeo Behavioral Health, emphasized that more work remains to be done.

"One thing everyone out there shares is trauma. So, what can we do to treat that more? What can we do with prevention with that? What can we do to support people more?" said Baldwin. "And obviously affordable housing is important, and it is a big deal, but if we can do more to treat people's trauma and help them get back to work, that'll just benefit this country as a whole."

Baldwin said one of the things he would like to propose to the city is transitional housing because "there's people out there that want to work."

A proposal for a $5.7 million “tiny home transitional village” that could hold up to 200 beds for the homeless at the former site of Topeka’s Tent City was proposed to the Topeka City Council by Barry Feaker, former executive director of the Topeka Rescue Mission in July 2021.

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Marty Johnson, benefit specialist with Valeo, helps Matthew Jackson fill out the point-in-time survey outside of the Dollar Tree, 2630 S.W. 6th Ave. on Wednesday morning. Ten teams fanned across the city to complete the surveys, which are required by the U.S. Department of Housing to ensure proper funding is allocated to communities in need.
Marty Johnson, benefit specialist with Valeo, helps Matthew Jackson fill out the point-in-time survey outside of the Dollar Tree, 2630 S.W. 6th Ave. on Wednesday morning. Ten teams fanned across the city to complete the surveys, which are required by the U.S. Department of Housing to ensure proper funding is allocated to communities in need.

Last year, Feaker told the Capital-Journal, questions had since been raised as to whether there might be better ways to approach the problems, and his idea hadn't gained much momentum.

Matthew Jackson, a native of San Bernardino, California, said the process to receive housing in Kansas is easier than what he experienced in California.

"Sometimes I'll get stuff, but I try not to have everything with me all the time," Jackson said. "Either it gets stolen, or I'll lose it. I just try to be lightweight, so it's more easy to do stuff."

Jackson said, "Don't be afraid to ask for help, no matter what it is you're going through."

Keishera Lately is the business reporter for the Topeka Capital-Journal. She can be reached at klately@cjonline.com. Follow her on Twitter @Lately_KT.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Topeka has its 2023 homeless count for federal funding opportunities