Articles Tagged: Homelessness

The bill introduced this week would have allowed cities and counties to use state funds to establish homeless encampments on public property, and would prohibit sleeping, camping or erecting a shelter on public property outside of official sites. The legislation was ultimately tabled on Tuesday.

This year’s winter “Point in Time” count Jan. 24 yielded mixed results in Linn and Johnson counties that showed perhaps the start of changing trends for both.

With 13 apartments, this building will have an impact on a growing, chronically homeless population in Cedar Rapids.

National increase reflects a soaring homeless population in Linn County also.

The winter gear items were donated by employees at UnityPoint Health-St. Luke’s Hospital and at UnityPoint Clinics in the Cedar Rapids. In total, nearly 400 hats, gloves and scarves were donated, as well as several winter jackets, according to the hospital.

Shelter House opens its winter emergency shelter with 40 beds, which were filled the first night it opened last week. Officials hope it’s because they have been spreading the word but are worried it may because the need is greater this year. .

Linn County and the city of Cedar Rapids are looking to jointly fund a homeless systems manager for up to three years who will collaborate with service providers to streamline gaps in services for the growing population of those experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

With homelessness on the rise and Cedar Rapids residents being in need of more affordable housing, here’s what candidates seeking Cedar Rapids City Council seats in Nov. 7 local elections had to say about improving housing access.

Social service professionals across Iowa work to address human needs in various ways, and the intersection between their sectors is significant. Food insecurity can be related to transportation, which can be related to work — and so on.

Almost all of the 13 people staying in a homeless encampment in Iowa City that caught fire Wednesday recently have had housing applications rejected due to their source of income -- a housing voucher, according to a Shelter House.

Recommendations by a state panel to cut or consolidate more than 100 administrative boards and commissions in Iowa could put millions in federal funding at risk to local nonprofits and public entities. And it may hinder efforts to provide safe and affordable housing at a time when homelessness is on the rise, according to federal, state and local nonprofit leaders

As the number of people living unsheltered continues to set records in Linn County, a chronically homeless population in need of different housing interventions is becoming more visible.

Homeless residents told The Gazette they need more to protect them from heat-related illnesses.

In life, Hector Perez was the man who was there for everyone, no matter the personal challenges he contended with day to day. After his death in December 2021, Willis Dady is ensuring that he will still be there for everyone who comes after him — in name and spirit.

Disasters have worsened the barriers Linn County residents face to accessing safe, stable housing, but those issues are even more prevalent based upon a person's race, age, disability or other facets of their identity, according to a recently unveiled report.