For Immediate Release: May 15, 2023
Media Contact: Max Wing | max@downtownindy.org
Downtown Indy, Inc. launches homelessness outreach partnership in the Mile Square
Full-time street outreach team and increased IMPD Homeless Unit to drive housing solutions, barrier-busting supports, and wrap-around services
INDIANAPOLIS - - Today, Downtown Indy, Inc. (DII), along with Mayor Joe Hogsett, city-county councillors, and local service providers announced the launch of the Downtown Collaborative Outreach Initiative. In partnership with Horizon House and Adult and Child Health, the program will invest more than $650,000 in City allocated federal funding to increase direct outreach and engagement to people experiencing homelessness in the Mile Square. The initiative, which aligns with Strategic Priority 1 of the Indianapolis Community Plan to End Homelessness, came together with guidance from the Coalition for Homelessness Intervention & Prevention (CHIP).
The 18-month partnership will focus on connecting homeless populations with interim and permanent housing as well as providing barrier-busting supports and wrap-around services. Additionally, funding will help mobilize a team of six full-time outreach specialists and further invest in the IMPD Homeless Unit. This latest initiative is a critical piece of Mayor Hogsett’s November 2022 announcement to enhance safety and cleanliness in Downtown, which included an additional $3.5 million in support to DII.
“Addressing homelessness in Indianapolis, and the immediate Mile Square, requires a collaborative effort from our city leaders and service providers, and we’re grateful to Horizon House and Adult and Child Health for joining us in this push for noticeable change Downtown,” said DII President & CEO Taylor Schaffer. “With funding from the City of Indianapolis, our organizations will adopt a holistic approach to homeless outreach, from long-lasting housing solutions to immediate mental health resources.”
“Downtown Indianapolis continues to be Indiana’s primary hub for arts, culture, hospitality, and sports. That’s why we’re making strategic investments into public safety, cleanliness, and outreach,” said Mayor Hogsett. “This critical piece of the City’s partnership with Downtown Indy, Inc. will connect people in need with services that can help. In doing so, we make Downtown a more welcoming place, and help build a city where everyone can enjoy the best of what Downtown has to offer.”
To oversee the homeless outreach team, DII will hire a Community Outreach Coordinator who will serve as the convener and strategist for engagement in the Mile Square. The coordinator will maintain outcomes-based metrics to illustrate positive community impact including the number of people experiencing homelessness on a sustainable housing track as well as the number of unhoused individuals in the Mile Square footprint. This includes leveraging outreach specialists and additional IMPD Homeless officers to provide a combined officer and social professional team based on individual needs.
“We are honored to be a part of such a great collaboration that is increasing services to our neighbors experiencing homelessness in the downtown area,” said Teresa Wessel, executive director of Horizon House. “Our mission is to help get every person we serve on a path to housing, and this initiative helps us build the foundations to end homelessness.”
"It is no coincidence that as we rethink and reimagine a better and stronger future for our downtown, we are doing so by ensuring that the needs of our unhoused neighbors are met because our downtown is meant to serve everyone in the city," said Council President Vop Osili. "That is why collaborative partnerships and investments like this are important to strengthen and streamline coordinated care and services for folks experiencing homelessness."
In addition to the formation of the Downtown Collaborative Outreach Initiative, DII’s $3.5 million in funding from the City has been dedicated to other safety and cleanliness projects to strengthen the Mile Square. A significant portion of these funds have already been operationalized on increased overtime shifts for IMPD bike patrol officers and a boost to crime fighting technology with new mobile security cameras connected to IMPD monitoring software and more b-link cameras. Funding also supports DII’s increased street cleaning presence in the Mile Square, currently employing 36 full-time workers with coverage seven days a week and a 24-hour response time, and the deployment of new public bathrooms starting in June.
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About Downtown Indy, Inc.
Founded in 1993, Downtown Indy, Inc. is a public/private partnership existing to improve Downtown, and is also known as Indianapolis Downtown, Inc. As a private, not-for-profit organization, Downtown Indy, Inc. is uniquely positioned to address issues that affect the area’s growth and well-being. Downtown Indy, Inc. focuses on development, management, activation, and marketing to advance Downtown as a great place to live, learn, work and play.
About Horizon House
Horizon House is a central Indiana non-profit committed to helping individuals experiencing homelessness. This support includes pathways to permanent supportive housing, as well as a variety of services to help individuals in both their immediate and long-term needs. Horizon House offers a safe place for the Indianapolis homeless community, serving them with hospitality, dignity and respect as they take steps toward a more stable life. Horizon House is focused on building the foundations to end homelessness. Visit www.horizonhouse.cc to learn more.
About Adult and Child Health
Adult & Child Health is an accredited nonprofit primary care, behavioral health, and social services provider with multiple locations in central Indiana. We strive for caring communities, where every child, adult and family have the opportunities they need to live healthy, happy, productive lives. For more information about Adult & Child Health programs, please contact 317-882-5122 or visit our website at www.adultandchild.org.