Durham is stepping up its efforts to squarely face the persistent challenge of homelessness with a new collaboration aimed at rethinking the local strategy for tackling this issue. In an announcement made this week, both the City and County of Durham are partnering with the national nonprofit Community Solutions, as well as their Built for Zero initiative, to embark on Durham’s Strategic Plan to End Homelessness. This plan hinges on a truly collaborative approach, calling upon the experience and expertise of residents, frontline service providers, and leaders across different sectors to make homelessness in Durham a solvable problem.
The initiative, which commenced with a series of listening sessions last month, aimed to pull together representatives from healthcare, business, government, and nonprofit sectors to openly discuss successful strategies and scope out opportunities to promptly and effectively provide those experiencing homelessness with stability and support. These sessions, according to a statement obtained by the City of Durham’s website, featured contributions from Durham City Manager Bo Ferguson and Durham County Manager Claudia Hager. Ferguson shared that “Our commitment to ending homelessness in Durham requires collaboration at every level. This strategic planning effort—guided by a bold vision, community input, and expert leadership—will allow us to build a more coordinated and compassionate system to better serve our unhoused neighbors.”
The partnership will see the establishment of a leadership team drawn from a cross-section of community partners. This team will be responsible for ensuring that a diverse range of perspectives are considered in the first phase of the initiative, setting the stage for recommendations to City and County leadership before year’s end. The City of Durham’s website lists key members including Ian Lee Brown from Duke Health, Tasha Melvin from Families Moving Forward, and others who represent critical facets of the community…