Here’s how Champaign Co. community leaders aim to tackle homelessness

CHAMPAIGN COUNTY, Ill. (WCIA) — Community leaders from across Champaign County met Wednesday for a monthly coalition meeting, focusing on tackling homelessness. The conference aimed to help the 279 people in the county who are dealing with homelessness.

Prominent figures like Urbana Mayor Diane Marlin, Urbana Police Chief Larry Boone, and other city employees from Champaign, Urbana, and Danville attended the meeting. Leaders and advocates from the Champaign County Continuum of Service Providers to the Homeless (CSPH) presented an overview of the issues at hand, with immediate goals to improve access and education for service providers across the county.

“We’re going to share data that tells the true picture of our homeless population,” said Tracy Parsons of CSPH. Most of us are not really aware of how the issue has grown, what the numbers are, what services and supports are available, and what needs are unmet.”

The discussion also included centralized intake, emergency shelters for children, and exit destination resources for people finishing programs. Parsons said today’s meeting was meant to be informational and allow community leaders to begin finding solutions.

“We’ll discuss just the sheer data, what’s going on in our community, what services exist right now, and what we’re going to do,” added Jessica McCann of the Regional Planning Commission.

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