Downtown homelessness pilot program expanding, receiving city funding

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- A pilot program aimed at both improving safety on Sixth Street and connecting people experiencing homelessness with necessary resources is expanding.

The Downtown Austin Alliance (DAA) launched the HEART initiative in February. HEART stands for "Homeless Engagement Assistance Response Team." The program involves outreach teams with Urban Alchemy who walk the streets trying to connect people experiencing homelessness with shelters and other such resources.

"People who work this program, who conduct the outreach, are people with lived experience," said Bill Brice with the DAA. "Either with long term incarceration, substance abuse, or long bouts of homelessness.'

The pilot was originally supposed to run from February through July, but Brice said the DAA extended it through September because of the early success it saw.

Alfred Stewart is an example of that success. He received shelter and addiction services during the early months of the program, and even landed himself a job at a downtown pizza shop.

"Giving you a shot at civilization again," he said.

Throughout the eight-month pilot, 120 people received shelter and 53 others were connected with family members who could take them in, according to Brice.

"Entering that critical support networking and out of that homeless service system where they're not using resources desperately needed by other people," he said, in reference to the individuals connected with family members.

The pilot was privately funded through the DAA, but its success prompted the organization to ask for city funding and to expand the program. Brice says the city allocated funding in the FY2025 budget to expand the program, and he is working with the Homeless Strategy Office on what the more robust street outreach initiative will look like.

The goal is to launch the new program in January.