The Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust Releases Summer Census Data: Scaling-up Housing Capacity Is Key To Realizing Meaningful Reductions in Homelessness.

The Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust, together with homeless outreach teams and volunteers, fanned out across Miami-Dade County on Thursday evening, August 22, 2024, and into the early hours of August 23, 2024, to enumerate persons experiencing unsheltered homelessness as part of its biannual homeless census. Twenty-five teams encountered 1,004 unsheltered persons, a year-over-year increase of two percent, or 24 individuals. Reductions were realized in most areas of Miami-Dade, but increases were recorded in the county’s urban core.

“Our summer census demonstrates that we need to accelerate our housing strategies and scale up capacity if we want to realize meaningful reductions in unsheltered homelessness. We must execute on solutions that resolve homelessness not just today, but for the long term,” said Ron L. Book, Chairman of the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust. “I’m proud of our Continuum of Care. Resources are beyond stretched, yet they are essentially holding the line and keeping homelessness at bay while being responsive to the community.”

MIAMI-DADE HOMELESS TRUST CENSUS RESULTS & COMPARISON: August 24, 2023 to August 22, 2024

• City of Miami-City of Miami, City Limits:
  534 on 8/24/23; 619 on 8/22/24; Difference: +85; 16%
• City of Miami Beach- Miami Beach:
  152 on 8/24/23; 132 on 8/22/24; Difference: -20; -13%
• Miami-Dade County-South Dade, South of Kendall Drive to Monroe County Line:
  67 on 8/24/23; 45 on 8/22/24; Difference: -22; -33%
• Miami-Dade County-Unincorporated Miami-Dade County North of Kendall Drive to Broward County Line:
  227 on 8/24/23; 208 on 8/22/24; Difference: -19; -8%
• Subtotal - Number of UNSHELTERED Homeless:
  980 on 8/24/23; 1004 on 8/22/24; Difference: +24; 2%

The summer census comes just 46 days before a new state law takes effect. On October 1, 2024, cities and counties will be required to enforce bans on sleeping on public property, including the beach, sidewalks, bus stops, and parks where the homeless may sleep. On January 1, 2025, cities and counties could face legal action from any resident, business, or the Attorney General, for failing to comply with the new law within five days of a written complaint from a citizen. Statute 1365 (formerly House Bill 1365) does offer the option of sanctioned encampments.

“We reject sanctioned encampments and believe there is no evidence that they reduce homelessness,” said Chairman Book. “We are committed to investing in solutions that deliver long-term results and bringing new partners in, as we firmly believe we can end homelessness in Miami-Dade.”

Miami-Dade County is one of the only Continuums in the United States that conducts a summer census. The next census is the January Point-in-Time, mandated by US-HUD.

Editor’s Note: Complete point-in-time results with year-over-year comparisons will be available online in September or by request by emailing [email protected].