We're working with communities to solve homelessness together.
Homelessness
Homelessness and the housing crisis are inextricably linked, and we work with clients in a myriad of ways to address both — by leveraging significant affordable housing finance and real estate expertise to get housing built, engaging with communities that are most impacted by homelessness to create effective programs that improve people’s lives, and helping our clients shape better housing policy. We believe in placing the user experience at the center of permanent supportive housing solutions for our unhoused community members. Our interdisciplinary team has a track record of working inside and outside of local government to advance innovative solutions that promote racial equity and economic justice.
HR&A is proud to support the Center for Fair Futures’ new report, Housing Justice for Young People Aging out of Foster Care in New York City, which lays out a five-year plan to provide 800 new homes for youth exiting foster care. The findings in this report present an opportunity for policymakers, service providers, and mission-driven investors to come together to prevent homelessness for a uniquely at-risk population.
HR&A developed an Affordable Housing Plan for the City of Charlottesville that centers racial equity and regional collaboration to guide the city’s investments in affordable housing programs and policies. Charlottesville has made significant progress on the Plan’s three major initiatives including: dedicating $10M a year to affordable housing, building inclusive governance throughout the City’s housing ecosystem, and adopting progressive, inclusionary zoning reforms — all of which are shaping a denser, more economically diverse Charlottesville.
HR&A collaborated with the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health to design and implement the County’s Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) Housing Program. Within 12 months, the original MHSA funds were committed to 30 projects, and together with $131 million of supplemental funding added during subsequent years, the County deployed a total of $243 million to fund 92 developments with 5,400 units, 1,700 of which were targeted to vulnerable populations.
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HR&A is creating a performance oversight system for the City of Los Angeles to maximize the impact of $1 billion spent annually to reduce homelessness. Funded by the Hilton Foundation and California Community Foundation, our work establishing performance targets and operational frameworks positions the City to ensure investments deliver on the vision of making homelessness rare, brief, and non-recurring.
Disrupting the cycle between homelessness and criminal legal system involvement starts with improving access to housing. HR&A conducted research for Enterprise Community Partners Southeast's Housing as a Pathway to Justice effort in Atlanta, mapping seven critical inflection points and recommending strategies for Enterprise to leverage its position as developer, convener, and policy expert.
The City of Austin and LifeWorks engaged HR&A and Good River Partners to support development of Dismantling the Foster Care to Homelessness Pipeline in Austin, Texas, a landmark 10-point plan to create 2,000 new housing opportunities for young people. Our work responded to a significant increase in youth homelessness in Austin over the past five years.
HR&A helped the Hilton Foundation refine its Los Angeles strategy to maximize the impact of over $300 million in regional investments across early childhood development, foster youth, opportunity youth, and homelessness initiatives. Our comprehensive socioeconomic analysis, peer foundation research, and strategic facilitation positioned the Foundation to adopt a more coordinated place-based approach that enhances local impact.
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