Point in Time (PIT) counts are conducted across the country annually, tracking how many people are experiencing homelessness to inform federal investment. Data visualizations have been part of a strategy to both understand and combat homelessness in places like Los Angeles County.
“Understanding who is homeless in our community and what their needs are is essential in the work of ending homelessness,” stated Emily Ball, homeless services system performance lead for the city, in the announcement.
Information on the dashboard is displayed by sheltered status and race. Users can filter the data further to include other categories — including gender, ethnicity and veteran status.
Asheville’s dashboard currently hosts data from the 2021 PIT count, but it will be updated in the spring with the 2022 PIT count, which took place Jan. 25.
In 2021, 527 people were recorded as homeless in the city's PIT count. The dashboard currently hosts PIT counts for each year from 2010 through 2021.
Homelessness data is collected through a joint effort between the city and local organizations, and is then aggregated with identifying information removed before being reported to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The count is required of all communities that receive HUD funding.
