Asked whether the city tracked individuals who took advantage of that program, Greenlaw said, "There is no 'tracking' of the individuals who participated in this program however, the FLPD homeless outreach officers have received numerous letter, postcards, and emails from some of the participants, thanking them for their service." Additionally, they need to be available to be at the Greyhound Station at the time of their departure." Officers follow up on the application by "making contact with the individual they are traveling to, verify the address, check for warrants, and few other things for checks and balances. "There are a series of questions that have to be answered, and officers have to conduct a follow-up with each application."įirst, applicants must sign the application "to verify all of their information is correct, and it states the city will not supply cash for traveling, that it is a one-time offer from the City of Fort Lauderdale, and that the city is not responsible for any mishaps, problems, or missed transfers along the way." Individuals interested in obtaining bus passes must "meet the FLPD homeless outreach officers at the outreach assessment point," Greenlaw says. See also: Fort Lauderdale's Controversial Homeless Feeding Restrictions Spark National Outrage Image: Dallas, Tx, USA - April 9, 2016: Greyhound buses at the terminal in Dallas downtown.This year, the City of Fort Lauderdale has budgeted $25,000 to purchase bus tickets for homeless people who would like to leave town to be taken in by their friends or family.Īccording to Deanna Greenlaw, public information officer for the Fort Lauderdale Police Department, "this program is facilitated via the Fort Lauderdale Police Department Homeless Outreach Program, via officers solely assigned to homeless outreach." Related: Does Giving Bus Tickets Out Of Town Really Help The Homeless? The Chronicle Crunches The Numbers And at the moment, this may just be political marketing for Safai's mayoral campaign. Thus far, we haven’t seen the brass tacks of how Safai proposes to expand the program. But sure, if you expand eligibility, it is likely that more people will use the program. The 2022 Point in Time Count) shows that most people lived in SF when they fell into homelessness in SF. “Unfortunately, as we’ve seen with his proposed legislation to require tax increases to pay for police staffing, he doesn’t always do that.” Image: SF.GovĪnd despite whatever stereotypes may exist, most unsheltered people did not “come here to be homeless.” The above graphic from the most recent “homeless census” (a.k.a. “We can’t comment on the specifics as to what it entails, but we would encourage Supervisor Safaí to work in collaboration towards productive solutions with any relevant departments on this matter,” Breed’s office said in a statement to the Chronicle. But Mayor London Breed’s office sees this as more of an effort to promote Safai’s mayoral campaign. Safai simply made the announcement at Tuesday’s board meeting there is no written proposed legislation yet. There’s also a per diem meal stipend for travel days, and a case worker who follows up with the individual three times over three months. “I want to return Homeward Bound to a stand-alone program, make it clear who is in charge, and expand access to more people - including those residents in our permanent supportive housing - so they can reunite with their families,” Safaí told the Chronicle. While the program currently only offers the tickets out of town to those currently unhoused, Safai’s proposal would make the offer available to anyone in the city’s shelter bed or supportive housing system. San Francisco Chronicle November 29, 2023īut at this week’s SF Board of Supervisors meeting District 11 Supervisor and mayoral candidate Ahsha Safai introduced his proposal to widely expand the Homeward Bound program. A San Francisco supervisor who’s running for mayor wants to expand the city’s two-decade-old program - Homeward Bound - offering homeless people a fully paid trip back home after the number of people using it dropped precipitously during the pandemic.
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