The count of homeless people in Dallas and Collin counties has decreased three years in a row, a result of widespread initiatives and action plans to provide permanent housing.
But in the success, surrounding individual cities report growing homeless populations and seek new solutions without similar funding and resources. The city of Dallas credits its landmark progress in reducing homelessness by 19% to a powerful collaborative effort from 140 organizations that make up the All Neighbors Coalition.
“Everyone has a story and deserves the opportunity to receive wraparound services to establish a fresh start for their lives,” said Kimberly Tolbert, interim city manager, in a press release. “These are our neighbors and together our impact will lead to a day when homelessness is extinct from our community.”
In September, the city announced that Phase 1 of the Street to Home Initiative had been completed. The project rehoused 100 individuals experiencing chronic homelessness from three zones in the city center. The plan hopes to reduce homelessness by half by 2026.The plan, an alternative solution to homelessness, is a stark difference from Dallas' historically firm approach.
Texas has a statewide ban on camping, and sleeping in public has been a fineable offense in Dallas since the ‘90s. The city recently rolled out a new program, Clean Sweep, and premiered plans to “reduce and mitigate homeless encampments." Since its inception, 45 encampments have been cleaned.
Homelessness in Other North Texas Cities
While Dallas celebrates its successes and ushers more homeless people out, cities like DeSoto and Denton prepare for increases in their homeless populations.“One of the things I think will affect us is we are going to see an uptick because as people figure out they can’t camp out in Dallas, they are going to seek refuge in the suburbs,” said DeSoto police Lt. Melissa Franks at a city council meeting reported by Focus Daily News.
DeSoto, along with Cedar Hill and Duncanville, is a member of a tri-city disciplinary team, the Crisis Assessment Resource Engagement Team (CARE), which offers free “community-based” support for those struggling with mental health issues. The CARE Team is one of the few resources DeSoto has to offer its homeless community.
The homeless population in Denton has doubled since 2019. The city has yet to see a decrease in the homeless population since the founding of its dedicated homelessness task force in 2014. Denton City Manager Sara Hensley attributed the growth to other cities carting their homeless population to shelters in Denton.
“If you build it, they will come,” Hensley told Denton City Council members during a meeting dedicated to the issue. “The city took it upon themselves to build a facility to serve people because they noticed there was a problem with people experiencing homelessness. The city decided to invest the $13 [million] or $14 million to build a facility, and when that happens, people will come. It’s no different than any other city that has those kinds of resources.”
The Dallas Morning News reported homelessness in Plano had increased 16.5% in 2023. In McKinney, homelessness has increased 8% since 2021. Fort Worth charts numbers similar to Dallas, witnessing a 12% decrease in homelessness. Earlier this year the Fort Worth City Council unanimously approved $1 million to reduce homelessness in high-density areas within 17 months.
Tallying Homelessness
A true count of homeless people is hard to attain. Figures are based on the annual Point-In-Time (PIT) Count, a yearly nationwide effort to tally homeless people. The final PIT figure accounts only for people in shelters or actively living on the streets. Although it may not offer the most comprehensive numbers for homelessness, the PIT has its merits.“The count is useful for understanding larger trends but utterly useless to determine if homelessness is increasing or decreasing,” Dallas City Council member Cara Mendelsohn told the Observer earlier this year.
The 2025 PIT Count is scheduled for January 23. Several cities are calling for volunteers to assist.
