BUSH ADMINISTRATION ANNOUNCES $577,107 IN GRANTS TO HOUSE AND SERVE HOMELESS IN OKALOOSA/WALTON COUNTIES

FORT WALTON BEACH - The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced grant funding awards totaling $65,034,967 statewide�$577,107 which will support local homeless assistance, health and
counseling services in the City of Fort Walton Beach, Okaloosa and Walton County area. The Grant will be provided
to the Ft. Walton Beach-Okaloosa/Walton County Continuum of Care (CoC), to continue critically needed services
for area homeless families and individuals being provided by the Bridgeway Center, Inc.

Nationwide, a record $1.33 billion in funding was awarded through grants announced by Housing and Urban Development Secretary Alphonso Jackson. HUD's Homeless Program Grants support thousands of local programs nationwide that house and serve homeless persons�from emergency shelters and transitional housing projects to permanent supportive housing programs.

"Today, we take another step along the road toward that day when we end chronic homelessness on our streets," said Jackson. "The funding will help provide homes and vital services to those who need them most-persons and families who deserve a place they can call home."

HUD's 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.

More than $58 million in Continuum of Care grants are awarded competitively to Florida programs to meet the needs
of their homeless clients. Continuum grants fund a wide variety of programs-from street outreach and assessment programs to transitional and permanent housing for homeless persons and families.

Emergency Shelter Grants are allocated based on a formula to state and local governments to create, improve and operate emergency shelters for homeless persons. These funds may also support essential services including job training, health care, drug/alcohol treatment, childcare and homelessness prevention activities. By helping to
support emergency shelter, transitional housing and needed support services, Emergency Shelter Grants are
designed to move homeless persons away from a life on the street toward permanent housing.

For nearly five years, HUD has increasingly emphasized the Bush Administration's goal of ending chronic
homelessness in its assistance programs. 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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