What a second count for unhoused residents told the city of Topeka
By: Stacey Saldanha-Olson, Topeka Capital-Journal
Published August 1, 2024
As the temperature rises, so does the Topeka homeless count.
The city of Topeka announced a second homeless count for summer and announced the homeless population has grown by nine people.
This is the first time the city has provided a second homeless count in a year.
“With the rising numbers of those experiencing homelessness nationwide, we believe it’s crucial to collect data more regularly,” said Carrie Higgins, housing service division director. “Given the warmer weather and anticipated increase, we are encouraged to see only a modest rise since January. The count also provides a valuable opportunity to connect individuals experiencing homelessness to services and resources in the community.”
The city conducted its annual Point in Time count for unhoused residents in late January. For the first time, Topeka last month had a second count.
A breakdown of the summer homeless count
- While the overall number of unhoused people increased by nine to 546 since January, the number of homeless family members lowered by nine to 433.
- Of the 546 individuals, 59% were male and 40% were female.
- The number of unhoused veterans deceased by one to 46.
- Unhoused people staying in emergency shelters dropped from 276 to 255 and people in transitional housing increased from 58 to 75.
- Unsheltered individuals rose from 203 to 216.