Transitions Between Homelessness States(Safe Haven, Temporary Housing , Emergency Shelter and Unsheltered) Before and After Operation Rio Grande in the Salt Lake Metropolitan Area

• Activity Number: 238 - SPEED: Environment and Health, Governmental Policies and Population Surveys, Part 1
• Type: Contributed
• Date/Time: Monday, July 29, 2019 : 2:00 PM to 3:50 PM
• Sponsor: Government Statistics Section
• Author(s): Prem Narayanan*
• Companies: Salt Lake County
• Keywords: Homelessness; Markov Process; Operation Rio Grande

Abstract

Operation Rio Grande is "an unprecedented partnership between state and local governments coming together to restore public safety and order in the Rio Grande Area(Downtown Salt Lake City)" with the common goal of preventing and minimizing homelessness ,increasing the number of successful exits from shelter to housing, eliminating open drug use and reducing crime. The estimated cost for the operation is $67 Million.

This poster explores the ways that Operation Rio Grande influenced the transitions between Safe Haven, Temporary Housing , Emergency Shelter and Unsheltered States in the population of homeless adults in the Salt Lake Metropolitan Area from HUD Point-In-Time estimates over 12 years, and the effect of Operation Rio Grande on the transitions. The numbers of arrivals in each state are assumed to be independent and identically distributed random variables. Transition Rates between the between Safe Haven, Temporary Housing , Emergency Shelter and Unsheltered states were calculated to develop a multi-state Markov Model and analyze the results of the Operation Rio Grande intervention.