Atlantic County to Conduct Homelessness Count Wednesday

Members of the Atlantic County Continuum of Care and community volunteers will conduct an annual count of the homeless in the county over a 24-hour period on Wednesday, Jan. 25, county officials announced on Monday.

The federally-mandated annual Project Homeless Connect point-in-time count provides data for the Homelessness Assessment Report and connects the homeless with opportunities, including esources for health services, social services, food and clothing, housing information, employment and veterans services.

The Salvation Army, located at 22 South Texas Avenue in Atlantic City, will open its doors to homeless individuals on Wednesday between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., at which time those who are homeless may complete a survey in an effort to get connected to needed services.

For more information, please contact Karla Guy at 609-345-6700, ext. 2728 or Jessica Reinhardt at 609-822-1108.

The counts include those living on the streets and those in emergency and transitional housing programs.

“The 24-hour count provides a snapshot of a continuing problem and the factors that lead these individuals to the streets,” Atlantic County Executive Dennis Levinson said.

Last year's count identified 536 homeless men, women and children in the county. That number was up from the 527 identified in 2010.

County officials stated that the actual number of homeless people over the course of a year may be two to four times larger than the number counted at one point in time.