Northwest Minnesota group facilitates funding for organizations combating homelessness

Mar. 29—BEMIDJI — In northwest Minnesota, homelessness is less visible than in other areas of the country and state, but it is still an issue. With cold weather and lack of places to shelter outside, many homeless people bounce between the houses of family or friends, or live in their cars.

"Up in our area of the world, people will say 'well, we don't have a homeless issue up here,'" said Barbara Johnson, coordinator of the Northwest Minnesota Continuum of Care. "Sometimes, I think, if people can't see it in a very tangible way, it doesn't exist."

Johnson helps a collective of organizations in northwest Minnesota access funding for programs that address the issue of homelessness in hopes of making it rare, brief and non-recurring in the region.

The NWCoC, based in Bemidji, is a regional planning body of organizations with a goal of ending homelessness in northwestern Minnesota. It serves 12 counties and three tribal sovereignties. In the Grand Forks region, organizations like the Tri-Valley Opportunity Council in Crookston, the Violence Intervention Project in Thief River Falls and Northwest Community Action in Badger are all members of the NWCoC.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development runs the Continuum of Care Program across the United States, including the 10 in Minnesota. The Northwest Minnesota Foundation administers the NWCoC and employs its coordinator. When member organizations are applying for HUD funding, the Northwest Minnesota Foundation serves as the NWCoC's collaborative applicant.

According to a 2022 point-in-time count, northwest Minnesota had 283 homeless individuals. Across the state, according to the same count, just under 8,000 people were experiencing homelessness.

For its member organizations, the NWCoC is a gateway to HUD funding. Since 2019, member agencies of the NWCoC have received $3.8 million in HUD funding, said Johnson. This March, HUD awarded more than $300,000 to the NWCoC.

Of the total $300,000, the Tri-Valley Opportunity Council in Crookston received more than $285,000 for a new three-year rapid re-housing program. The program will provide rental and deposit assistance to homeless families or families at risk of becoming homeless in Marshall and Norman counties, while also connecting them with other resources in their communities like transportation, child care and employment.

"We're going to really do some good work connecting families with the resources that they need to provide housing stability," said Maureen Hams, community services director at the Tri-Valley Opportunity Council.

HUD also awarded the NWCoC $15,000 for the Institute of Community Alliances to manage the Minnesota Northwest Homeless Management Information System, a database of information on homelessness in Minnesota.

Beyond funding, for homeless families and individuals, organizations in the NWCoC network provide consistent service through the NWCoC's "coordinated entry" process. People in need of housing resources can seek help from any of the organizations in the NWCoC and have access to a standardized process between those organizations.

"A client or a participant can enter from many doors and be provided the same assistance — they ultimately all get routed to where they need to go," said Hams.

In northwest Minnesota, one of the biggest challenges when addressing homelessness is the lack of available, affordable and accessible housing, said Johnson. Around 150 each quarter, or 600 people annually, access services through the coordinated entry system in northwest Minnesota but are unable to access an opening in a housing program, Johnson said.

"Our available housing we don't have enough of, the available housing that we do have is oftentimes aging, so it's old and needs updating our renovations," Johnson said.

Rental requirements for income, credit history and rental history can make some rental units inaccessible for homeless people, especially homeless youth, she said.

But despite challenges, like a lack of affordable housing, organizations in the NWCoC are making progress toward the goal of ending homelessness. Johnson says the needs of homeless veterans in the region have been addressed, making instances of homelessness for veterans brief and non-recurring. The region is also on track to end youth homelessness.

"It's a challenge, but it's one that we're succeeding at," Johnson said.