(The Center Square) – Advocates for the homeless in Dane County, are pressuring local leaders to add staff and increase services in taxpayer-funded day shelters, such as the county’s designated resource center The Beacon.
The letter, sent out by former Community Liaison of The Beacon Lindberg Chambliss and the Dane County Homeless Justice Initiative, accuses Madison and Dane county officials of financial irresponsibility by funneling millions of dollars into building a new jail and a public market instead of training and hiring a dedicated team of caseworkers for The Beacon.
“The City and County’s bandaid solutions to homelessness – funding shelters without caseworkers and relying on temporary services rather than systemic solutions – waste millions of taxpayer and private-donor dollars, yearly,” the letter reads. “These piecemeal approaches fail to address the causes of homelessness. Instead they perpetuate a costly cycle of crisis management – relying heavily on EMS, the fire department, and police – rather than stabilization.”
While the number of homeless people in Wisconsin has ticked upwards post-pandemic, reversing the previous downward trend, Dane County’s homeless population has decreased from 855 individuals in 2021 to 624 in 2023, according to a March 2024 report by the Wisconsin Policy Forum.
Currently, The Beacon averages 250-300 check-ins per day between its hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., but only emergency overnight shelters in the county operated by the Salvation Army are staffed with caseworkers.
Homeless advocates argue that because The Beacon operates during normal hours, it should have a regular staff of caseworkers to make referrals and screening staff from the county’s support services including behavioral health, aging, and disability services.
The letter’s authors outline four demands of city and county officials to address what they say are systemic problems in services offered to the homeless population:
Develop an actionable plan within 12 months involving a permanent investment by the city of Madison and Dane County into income-based affordable housing, achieved through a community referendum.Deploy county screening specialists and case managers for long-term care and behavioral health programs at high-need shelters like The Beacon within six months Either amend The Beacon’s contract to include daily case management services, or else transition its operations from the current provider, Catholic Charities, to public management.Ensure within six months that trained crisis workers are present daily at all homeless shelters in the county
The letter warned officials that if the demands remain unmet, the authors will launch aggressive political campaigns for the replacement of relevant elected and appointed officials in Dane County.
“Leadership in Madison and Dane County has failed to address the causes of homelessness, perpetuating a costly cycle of crisis management while neglecting comprehensive solutions,” Lindberg, the former community liaison, said. “This letter is a call to action for our leaders to prioritize dignity, stability, and the well-being of our most vulnerable neighbors.”
