1. Ending Family Homelessness
Spokane, Washington
Community, Housing, & Human Services
City of Spokane
Jonathan Mallahan January 2017

2. Spokane Highlights Second largest city in Washington State
Population of approx. 213,000 in City limits, combined statistical area approx. 698,000
Current vacancy rate is below 1%
2016 PIT Count: 981 persons (2011: 1272 Persons)

3. Family System 2012

4. Family Households
Between Spokane saw a 3% decrease in homeless family households based on PIT data

5. Family System 2012 System Overview:
Strong projects operating in silo’s
No coordinated access or referral
Minimal permanent intervention options
No prioritization
Project based waitlists
Change Based Engagement:
Community driven discussions and planning
State based mandates on coordinated entry require implementation

6. 2012 - After Coordinated Entry

7. Post-Coordinated Entry
System Overview:
Accessible and coordinated entry points
Alignment of system capacity and identified needs
Reallocated two TH projects to RRH projects
Full implementation of progressive engagement
Integrated RRH strategies in temporary housing
Change Based Engagement:
Redirected resources to what’s working, which meant sacrificing what wasn’t working as well
Increased engagement and utilization regarding HMIS – added an average of 31 user per year
Leaned in to hard conversations for ultimate client benefit

8. Housing by Project Type

9. Housing Bed Type

10. Self-Directed Referrals by Type

11. Family PIT Data
Between 2013 – 2016 Spokane saw a 33% decline in homeless family households based on PIT data

12. Keys to Success
Re-tooling your homeless system doesn’t require a huge infusion of additional funds
Utilize data and increase participation in HMIS
Create accessible and coordinated entry points
Be prepared to have difficult conversations and address concerns
Don’t wait until you figure it all out to start moving forward
City of Spokane
Community, Housing, & Human Services
Dawn Kinder, Director