Dartmouth to support homeless through Bristol County Continuum

As the housing crisis continues, there simply aren't enough homes for everyone in Bristol County. 

In Dartmouth alone there are about 12 to 15 individuals without homes, with many more in the middle of evictions, living in their cars and other unstable housing situations, according to Matt Dansereau, the town’s engagement coordinator. 

Within the next week and for the third year, Dansereau and his team will conduct a “point in time count” of all the homeless individuals living in town. Now that the town has joined the Bristol County Continuum of Care, which is a community-based homelessness response network, this new data will be added up with the rest of the individuals for a whole count of the county.

This count also gives the town’s outreach team a chance to connect those individuals with resources and referrals, Dansereau explained. 

However, the point in time count does not include residents that are in temporary housing situations, such as renting a motel room, couchsurfing with friends and family or in the process of being evicted. 

Being a part of this continuum, which is one of the largest in the state, means there are a lot more homeless, but also a lot more resources available, Dansereau said. 

Dartmouth continues to provide support with food and clothing while giving out referrals for services through the continuum, he added. 

Many of the homeless individuals in Dartmouth are in their 40s or 50s, but there are some younger folks and some as old as 77. Dansereau said the “face of homelessness” has changed over the years. Now, they are seeing more couples and families, who are harder to place in housing.

Dansereau credits the state’s housing crisis and other increases to finances, such as groceries. 

“We are low on all kinds of housing,” he said, adding how older folks are on fixed incomes and the average homeless person makes about $900 a month. 

But not everyone wants to get housing, Dansereau said, adding that about half of the town’s current homeless would like to stay the way they are. 

Dansereau explained there are “chronically homeless,” who have been without housing for a while out of choice. They often have mental health or addiction issues that cause them to want to stay homeless. Whereas, “first-time homeless” are often looking for a way out. 

Some were once residents of the town, but others have come to Dartmouth because it’s perceived as safer, but there are threats of lyme disease and West Nile Virus as well as a risk of getting lost in the woods, Dansereau said. 

The homeless in Dartmouth are often separated, so there aren't necessarily any homeless encampments in town, such as those found in Fall River before the ban was placed in the city at the end of last year, he said. 

There are no warming centers in town, but there are a few shelters in New Bedford, such as Sister Rose’s House, which offer varying hours for warming, he added.