AUSTIN, Texas — As part of the Housing-Focused Encampment Assistance Link (HEAL) initiative, the City of Austin recently relocated 20 people from St. Johns Avenue and North Interstate 35 in North Austin to the Southbridge Shelter, according to a press release from the City on Tuesday.
The HEAL initiative helps transfer occupants of homeless encampments and then connects them with housing. The program is funded in part by the funds the Austin City Council voted to allocate from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The council allocated $106.7 million of the ARPA funds to the issue of homelessness, with at least six million going to HEAL.
Since June of 2021, 170 people were transferred to the city's Southbridge and Northbridge shelters. Over the course of initiative, over 93% of those offered shelter have accepted.
"Nearly everyone we have offered shelter to is eager to move off the street when we’re able to offer dignified shelter and real resources to get into housing," said City of Austin Homeless Strategy Officer Dianna Grey.
The HEAL initiative is coordinated by the Homeless Strategy Division. It involves multiple City of Austin entities and community partners, including:
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