Mayor Rahm Emanuel Restores Homeless Aid

from http://www.chicagonewscoop.org/emanuel-moves-to-restore-limited-overnight-aid-for-homeless/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=emanuel-moves-to-restore-limited-overnight-aid-for-homeless

Mayor Rahm Emanuel moved Wednesday to reinstate limited overnight emergency services for the homeless, which had been shut down after a state budget cut.

A City Council ordinance introduced by Emanuel would earmark $200,000 to create two to three outreach teams, each consisting of two employees and a van, to transport homeless people to shelters between 12:00 a.m. and 8:00 a.m., according to Anne Sheahan, a spokeswoman for the city's Department of Family and Support Services.

Family and Support Services eliminated its overnight shift in August after a 49 percent cut in its funding from the state forced it to lay off 24 employees. The department currently has two service coordinators who work to place people in shelters between midnight and 8:00 a.m., but no vans or other means to transport those individuals to the shelters. About 20 percent of the department's requests for help come during those overnight hours, Sheahan told the Chicago News Cooperative in August.

"It is certainly a more limited crew than before," Sheahan said Wednesday, adding that the department has tried to encourage people who use the outreach service regularly to call during the day when it is fully staffed.