The South Dakota Housing Authority will conduct a survey in January, towards the goal of getting the most accurate tally of South Dakota’s unhoused population.
Joseph Tielke is the continuum of care administrator at the state Housing Authority. He said there are challenges to getting a complete picture of the unhoused population, especially in rural areas.
“It’s very difficult, to be honest," Tielke said.
"If we get any numbers in those rural areas, sometimes it’s only the domestic violence shelters, because they’re the only partners doing the work on a routine basis to report the numbers. The (count) is not truly a representation to the extent of homelessness, it’s a better representation of our reach and where we can find folks to survey.”
While the choice of performing the survey during the final ten days of January raises questions, that window has historically been legally mandated across the country by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
“We want to make sure that we’re producing data that is one-to-one with other communities," Tielke said. "As far as it being cold, winter is when people are most concerned about the ability of unsheltered people to survive, because, at the same time we’re counting, it’s also a bit of an outreach opportunity.”
Ultimately, Tielke said, a goal is an overall reduction in the unhoused population in South Dakota, which can be helped if shelters have volunteers and proper community support.
