Emergency Homeless Shelters in North America: An Inventory and Guide for Future Practice

Abstract

One of the most contentious issues in many cities is the fierce debate over the location, management and quality of homeless shelters. While these debates rage in places around North America, little research has been done on housing policy concerning homeless shelters. The purpose of this research was to provide an inventory of a broad cross-section of cities in North America in order to develop recommendations for more effective policies, practices, regulations and standards of operation for emergency homeless shelters. This study documents trends and regulations for homeless shelters in Canada and the United States. We used two separate independent surveys to see how 98 cities managed the relatively recent emergence of homeless shelters. One national survey examined 51 of the 100 largest cities’ homeless shelter policies and another survey reviewed 47 selective cities that are small, medium, and large. Emergency homeless shelters are often criticized for poor physical condition, overcrowding, lack of privacy, crime, health concerns, and negative impacts on neighborhood property values and businesses. Our research documents the wide range of practices that are being implemented in efforts to respond to these problems, some of the limitations of these practices, and broader structural forces that nurture homelessness and undercut efforts to respond.