A recent opinion piece in the Union newspaper about dealing with the homeless issue has angered the head of a homeless advocacy group. In an ‘other voices’ column published on Monday, Nevada County Health and Human Services Director Michael Heggarty wrote that the Board of Supervisors and the Department of Housing and Urban Development –quote– “do not recommend and will not fund campgrounds, tent cities, or tiny house villages as these models have not been shown to be effective or economical in the long term.”–unquote– Sierra Roots Executive Director Janice O’Brien told KNCO on ‘KNCO insight’ it’s wrong to take any option off the table, and the approach of waiting for some of the county’s homeless to reach out for help is not going to work…
Heggarty writes that HUD “recommends a continuum of care comprised of emergency and transitional shelter with the eventual goal of permanent housing.” O’Brien says she’s frustrated at the lack of cooperation between the county and organizations like Sierra Roots and others…
According to Heggarty’s column, the 2017 count identified 371 homeless in Nevada County, of which 15 percent are children. He also writes that number is likely higher. Heggarty did not return phone calls to KNCO for this story.
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