New Orleans officials to clear Treme homeless encampment by Mardi Gras
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New Orleans officials say they plan to clear the Treme encampment of unhoused people by Mardi Gras.
Why it matters: Under pressure from residents and business owners, city officials announced plans last fall to clear large encampments by transitioning the unhoused people living there into formal housing.
- But doing so is a complicated task, and the new deadline represents a delay from the city's original goals.
Catch up quick: Last spring, Mayor LaToya Cantrell launched the Office of Homeless Services & Strategy as the unhoused population increased by 15% in just a year.
- Shortly after, unhoused outreach nonprofit UNITY of Greater New Orleans received a 3-year federal grant worth nearly $15 million to provide housing for at least 400 people each year.
- In October, a plan presented to City Council outlined strategies to clear the unhoused encampments, one at a time.
The city's initial goal was to find housing for 420 people by the end of 2023, and work got underway as the encampment under the Pontchartrain Expressway was the first cleared.
Yes, but: Nonprofit leaders said in December that the initial goal to provide housing for every unhoused person by the end of the year wasn't realistic.
- That hasn't stopped local leaders from coming under fire for failing to meet it.
- Though the partnership between city officials and nonprofit agencies looked tense earlier this week, everyone now appears on board with the goal to clear the Treme encampment along Claiborne Avenue by Feb. 9, according to Sophie Kasakove with NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune.
The big picture: The unhoused situation in New Orleans is not unique, as homelessness across the country is reaching record levels, according to federal data.
- Homelessness is disproportionately impacting Black, African and Indigenous populations, reports Axios' April Rubin.
- Families with children saw a 16% increase in homelessness, Rubin writes.