Final Community Input Session this Monday!
Emergency Shelter: Community Concerns and Best Practices

Thursday Outreach Pop-up at Cuddy Park

Implementing a Complex Care Shelter: Opportunities and Lessons Learned

When COVID-19 began and homeless shelters reduced capacity to allow for social distancing, a conversation in Anchorage began among a diverse set of stakeholders about the unmet needs of the medically vulnerable population. Identifying the disparities this group was experiencing and leveraging their background in partnering with healthcare systems, they recognized they were well-positioned to provide this type of support. Continue Reading

Providence Alaska House

Dakota Orm, Healthcare Integration Director with ACEH, had the opportunity to tour the building site for Providence Alaska House Tuesday, May 9, 2023.

Providence Alaska House is a Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) project designed to address the needs of elders with significant health conditions who are experiencing homelessness.

Peer Support Training

Evening, weekend, and weekday training are scheduled throughout the year
 
Peer Support Training offers those with lived experience with mental illness and substance misuse training to learn how to use their personal experiences to help others.

Outreach groups band together to provide for those in homeless camps

"On Tuesday, outreach groups were located at Cuddy Park to lend a helping hand, but even with aid, it’s hard for those sleeping outside.

The organizations will band together every Tuesday at the park throughout the month of May and various parts of the summer to help the homeless overcome the obstacles they’re facing.

“We do coordinated entry assessments,” said Jason Cates, program outreach manager for the Coalition to End Homelessness. “We have medical here, which is a big deal. We have food, basic needs, things like that.”

There has been a steady increase in homeless camps around the city as the closure date for the majority of residents at the Sullivan Arena approached.

Since Monday’s official call to clear all but those who suffer from mental and physical issues, the number of tents have surged.

“There’s definitely more than there was, you know, two weeks ago when the Sullivan was open, but we’re going to see these things in different spots around town,” Cates said." Continue Reading

Task force meets to begin discussion on sanctioned camps for the unhoused

"The inaugural meeting heard discussion about what makes a sanctioned camp successful. Themes discussed included safety precautions, basic amenities, and the geographic location of the camps.

Assembly member Felix Rivera said this first meeting was centered around brainstorming ideas to determine the task force’s direction." Continue Reading

How Anchorage’s response to homelessness has changed over the last 20 years

Nancy Burke has worked on housing and mental health issues in Alaska since 2002. She’s moving on, but shared some of her perspective first.

"As Anchorage's emergency homeless shelter cuts capacity, city officials on Alaska Insight encourage people to remember the humanity and practice compassion toward those experiencing homelessness." Continue Reading

New Resource Available: “Homecoming: Life After Incarceration”

The United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world. HIV prevalence among incarcerated individuals is more than three times higher than among the general population. The majority of the people in America's jails and prisons will eventually be released, and they face a myriad of challenges once they do so.

To provide support to community-based organizations working with individuals released from incarceration, including Housing Opportunities for Persons With AIDS (HOPWA) grantees and project sponsors, HUD has developed a suite of resources called Homecoming: Life After Incarceration.

Training Opportunity
Places of Social Inclusion: Addressing Homelessness and Mental Health Needs in Public Space

Project for Public Spaces

This two-day crash course offers an overview of how the mental health and housing crises play out in public spaces, as well as how placemakers can collaborate with social service providers to contribute to more inclusive places and fairer cities.

Tuesday, May 16, 2023 @ 10:00 A.M. – 12:00 P.M ET
Thursday, May 18, 2023 @ 10:00 A.M. – 12:00 P.M ET