‘Sorry to wake you up.’ Volunteers count Charlotte’s growing homeless population
Whether the sun is up or not, Chauncey Williams is hard at work.
Williams, originally from San Francisco, moved to Charlotte in adulthood to be near family. Before the sun rose Tuesday, he was selling roses. He mixes hats and other goods into his sales repertoire. But he’s always loved flowers and gardening.
Keeping a traditional job is difficult, he said.
Williams was counted Thursday morning as part of the annual Point-In-Time Count, a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development event nationwide where counties report how many people in a single night are experiencing homelessness.
“We know we need to end homelessness in this country, but you need to know what’s the extent of the issue. What are the barriers people are facing?” said Liz Clasen-Kelly, CEO of Roof Above, a nonprofit working to end homelessness in Charlotte.
While volunteers interviewed a person bundled up on the sidewalk, surrounded by their belongings, Williams approached with a dozen multi-colored roses wrapped in plastic film.
Would they like to buy a rose, Williams asked. They say “no.” They’re working.
Williams gave them one anyway.
After answering some questions from the volunteers, he walked on into the dark uptown streets in search of his next customer.
In Romare Bearden Park
Clasen-Kelly took the lead early Thursday morning in uptown’s third ward with a small group of volunteers. She knows some of the people who sleep in the area by name, but as the group walked through Romare Bearden Park, it felt empty. The rushing sound of the park’s water fountain and an inhospitable, 40-degree wind chill fill the park at night. The noise of bustling city traffic fills the park during the day.
A person sits alone at a table in a lit area of the park around 4:45 a.m. in a thick coat and hat. The group approaches him. He says he is experiencing homelessness, but talking to people makes him nervous. The volunteers back off and conduct an “observational survey.” He’ll still be counted, but less information about his demographics will be provided to HUD.
One characteristic in particular stood out to the volunteers.
“He was so young,” Clasen-Kelly said.
It’s important for those working the count to be respectful of those experiencing homelessness who don’t want to answer questions, Clasen-Kelly said. Part of the process is informing Charlotteans experiencing homelessness about shelters and other services available while respecting their space and dignity.
They won’t know the results of the count for months, Clasen-Kelly said, but last year’s count plus shelter and county data show the number of people experiencing homelessness in Charlotte growing. The county’s 2022 State of Housing report shows the number of people without a permanent home in Charlotte jumping by more than 200 in one month.
Many factors keep someone from finding shelter and permanent housing, including losing a job. But rising rent prices are the primary culprit keeping housing out of reach for the more than 2,500 people Mecklenburg County recorded as being homeless at the end of December, according to its housing and homelessness dashboard.
‘I don’t got nothing’
After a loop around the park, the group didn’t find anyone else – unusual for an area that’s typically more popular. Maybe it was the rain yesterday or the cold temperatures, they speculated before moving on.
A group led by Roof Above employee Joe Hamby moved down South Church Street, stopping between Not Just Coffee and Ink N Ivy, where they saw a man sleeping.
He was alone, wrapped in a colorful blanket and using a backpack for a pillow. Shoes, a full grocery bag and a bike sit beside him. It’s 5 a.m. and the streets of uptown remain empty except for a loud garbage truck making its rounds. Empty lime green scooters line the streets. Neon lights inside the windows of the bar next door shine on an empty dance floor.
“Sorry to wake you up,” Hamby told the man.
The man is a veteran and he’s been sleeping in the same spot all night, he told Hamby, who knelt and explained some of the questions are personal and weird. Answering them truthfully helps them provide better services, Hamby said. He went on to ask about his sexual orientation and history of illness.
“I don’t got nothing,” the man said when Hamby asks if he has any access to health care.
After the interview concludes, Hamby thanked him for letting him interrupt his night.
“Be safe,” Hamby said.
Out of reach
Groups such as Roof Above that run shelters do what they can to help those experiencing homelessness in Charlotte, and the growing cost of living isn’t helping.
The average rent in Mecklenburg County for a one-bedroom apartment was $1,300 in April 2022, according to a county report. To afford that without being considered “cost-burdened,” an individual would need to earn $52,000 annually.
Data from the same report show a median priced home during the same month cost $382,000. To afford a home at this price, a Mecklenburg County resident needs to earn a $105,000 annual salary.
Both the city of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County have discussed affordable housing as a priority as they determine spending for their fiscal year 2024 budgets.
The city of Charlotte calculated 32,000 units are needed to meet the needs of more than 50,000 cost-burdened Charlotteans who don’t have an affordable place to live.
For people without a permanent home like Williams, the need for a warm place to live and sleep becomes more urgent when the temperature drops. Living without shelter is less comfortable and safe during the winter.
For now, Williams will keep moving around uptown to keep warm, offering a rose to people passing by.
This story was originally published January 26, 2023 at 3:18 PM.
