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A Partnership Between Mayor Kasim Reed and Community Leaders to Dramatically Reduce Street Homelessness in Atlanta

About

About Unsheltered No More

Each night, approximately 2,400 Atlanta citizens sleep under bridges, in parks, and on benches and sidewalks. Another 2,500 cycle in and out of emergency shelters. Despite significant increases in housing and social services over the past decade, the number of homeless Atlantans has not decreased.

With leadership and commitment from Mayor Reed, Unsheltered No More is an effort to improve cross-agency collaboration and community partnership around homelessness. The short-term goal is to move 800 people into stable housing by December 2013. Over the long term, Unsheltered No More seeks to catalyze a new level of coordination among all of the public, private, nonprofit, and faith-based organizations that serve the homeless—and to set Atlanta on a path to meeting the federal government’s goal of ending chronic and veteran homelessness by 2015.

Unsheltered No More draws on local expertise, data-driven decision-making, and national best practices to:

  • launch a coordinated outreach, intake, and assessment process
  • promote alignment of Atlanta’s housing stock and services with the needs of the population and with shifting federal regulations
  • develop tools and incentives for serving the most vulnerable
  • reduce barriers to housing and services
  • coordinate with the criminal justice system

Unsheltered No More relies on the leadership and expertise of individuals who understand the dynamics of homelessness in Atlanta and have the authority and influence to drive change. The Unsheltered No More Advisory Board is charged with shaping the priorities of initiatives, while the Strategy Team is charged with developing a strategic framework for implementing the priorities of the Advisory Board. The Mayor’s Innovation Delivery Team provides guidance, coordination, and oversight.

Advisory Board
  • Tom Andrews, President, St. Joseph’s Mercy Care; Past Chair, National Healthcare for the Homeless Council
  • Carmen Chubb, Asst. Commissioner, Department of Community Affairs
  • Bobbi Cleveland, Executive Director, The Tull Charitable Foundation
  • Joan Garner, Commissioner, Fulton County Board of Commissioners
  • Jack Hardin, Co-Chair, Regional Commission on Homelessness
  • Steve Joiner,  Partner, Deloitte, LLP
  • Michael Kay, Immed. Past Chair, Community Foundation of Atlanta; Past Chair, United Way of Metro Atlanta; Past Chair, Jewish Federation of Greater Atlanta
  • Janine Lee, President & CEO, Southeastern Council of Foundations
  • Michael Link, Regional Coordinator, Dept of Behavioral Health and Dev Disabilities
  • Milton Little, President & CEO, United Way of Metropolitan Atlanta
  • Mike Proctor, COO and Chief Policy Officer, Atlanta Housing Authority
  • Kasim Reed, Mayor, City of Atlanta
  • Reverend George Wirth, Senior Pastor, First Presbyterian Church of Atlanta; Co- chair, Regional Council of Churches of Atlanta
Strategy Team

  • Mitzi Bickers, Human Services Director, City of Atlanta
  • Protip Biswas, Vice President, Regional Commission on Homelessness
  • Charles Edwards, President & CEO, Atlanta Center for Self Sufficiency
  • Laurel Hart, Director of the Office of Affordable Housing, Georgia Department of Community Affairs
  • Allen Mitchell, Deputy Director, DeKalb County Department of Community Affairs
  • Ken Prince, COO, St. Joseph’s Mercy Care
  • Mike Rowicki, Deputy Director, Fulton County Housing and Human Services
  • Doug Scott, Director of Supported Housing, Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities
  • Tracey Scott, Vice President of Strategy & Innovation, Atlanta Housing Authority
  • Don Watt, Director of Office of Special Housing Initiatives, Georgia Department of Community Affairs
Mayor Reed’s Innovation Delivery Team
Mayor Reed’s Innovation Delivery Team is currently focused on two of Atlanta’s most pressing challenges: reducing street homelessness and improving the City’s customer service for residents and businesses. Funded by a $3.3 million grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Team is working with government and community partners to define and execute the strongest initiatives to help the City of Atlanta impact these priorities.

Atlanta is one of five cities to receive an Innovation Delivery Team grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies. Innovation Delivery Team grants were also awarded to Chicago, Louisville, Memphis and New Orleans. Through these investments, Bloomberg Philanthropies seeks to support grantee cities in achieving impact on challenging issues facing cities and establishing models that can be used by mayors anywhere to develop and drive innovation over time.

  • Kristin Wilson, Innovation Delivery Team Director
  • Susan Lampley, Homelessness Project Officer
  • Regina Cannon, Project Manager, Permanent Supportive Housing
  • Emily Lieb, Project Manager, Veterans
  • Khari Hunt, Project Manager, Rapid Rehousing
Partner Organizations