MIAMI-DADE COUNTY RECEIVES OVER $23 MILLION IN GRANTS TO HOUSE AND SERVE HOMELESS INDIVIDUALS AND FAMILIES

MIAMI - Today, at an event with Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Alvarez held at Camillus House Somerville Residence,
HUD Miami Field Office Director Armando Fana presented a check for over $23 million to local homeless providers. Programs throughout the county provide critically needed assistance to persons and families living without a home
of their own.

These awards are part of a national announcement that thousands of local programs that house and serve homeless persons�from emergency shelters and transitional housing projects to permanent supportive housing programs�will receive $1.33 billion in funding through grants announced on December 20, 2005 by Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson.

"Today, we take another step along the road toward that day when we end chronic homelessness on the streets of South Florida," said Fana. "The funding we announce today will help provide homes and vital services to the most vulnerable in our community � persons and families who deserve a place they can call home."

HUD's homeless funding is provided in two ways:

• HUD's Continuum of Care programs provide permanent and transitional housing to homeless persons. In
  addition, Continuum grants fund important services including job training, health care, mental health
  counseling, substance abuse treatment and child care.
  
  
• Emergency Shelter Grants convert buildings into homeless shelters, assist in the operation of local shelters
  and fund related social service and homeless prevention programs.

Combined, HUD's Continuum of Care and Emergency Shelter Grant programs will provide critically needed funding to nearly 5,000 local programs in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. For a more detailed local summary of the funding announced today, visit HUD's website.

The Goal to End Chronic Homelessness

For nearly five years, HUD has increasingly emphasized the Bush Administration's goal of ending chronic
homelessness in its assistance programs. Research indicates that approximately 10 percent of all homeless persons experience long-term or chronic homelessness. These studies also find that this hardest-to-serve population utilizes over half of all emergency shelter resources designed to assist homeless individuals and families. By shifting the federal emphasis toward meeting the needs of the most vulnerable homeless persons, more resources become available for those who experience homelessness as a temporary condition.

HUD is the nation's housing agency committed to increasing homeownership, particularly among minorities; creating affordable housing opportunities for low-income Americans; and supporting the homeless, elderly, people with disabilities and people living with AIDS. The Department also promotes economic and community development as
well as enforces the nation's fair housing laws. More information about HUD and its programs is available on the Internet and espanol.hud.gov.

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SEE ATTACHED LIST FOR HOMELESS ASSISTANCE AWARDS FOR MIAMI-DADE COUNTY

FISCAL YEAR 2005
CONTINUUM OF CARE COMPETITION
HOMELESS ASSISTANCE AWARDS REPORT WITH ESG