State grant extends housing for former Tent City residents in Elgin

A program created to house the former residents of the Tent City homeless encampment in Elgin has received a state grant that will fund its continuation through the end of next June.

The Unsheltered Pilot Program, a temporary housing project established by the city and the Association for Individual Development, was launched to provide safe shelter and case management for residents of Tent City who were moved to the Lexington Inn & Suites after a series of fires.

The city initially received $418,600 in state funding for hotel reimbursement. It also got an additional $65,000 from the Kane County Health Department grant. AID has since been awarded $1 million for the next fiscal year, with $700,000 allocated for the city’s continued hotel reimbursement.

So far, the city hasn’t incurred any major costs for the project.

Elgin had initially allocated $425,000, but that money hasn’t been needed yet due to the grant allocations. It could be used once all state funding runs out and until other sources of funding are secured.

During the first subaward agreement, which ran through this summer, 39 people received housing and supportive services through AID. Two clients transitioned into permanent housing, and four were added from state housing referral lists, bringing the total number of clients being served to 41.

City manager Rick Kozal told the city council during Wednesday’s meeting that the number can’t be increased due to AID’s case management capacity.

In addition to the two people who have transitioned to permanent supportive housing, program outcomes have included employment placements, engagement in mental health and therapy services and overall improvements in health and stability.

The city is actively evaluating long-term housing solutions, including the Lexington Inn & Suites, and is preparing a request for proposals to identify an operational provider to oversee day-to-day management of a facility that will serve as a low-threshold, non-congregate facility designed to offer both short-term shelter and pathways to transitional and supportive housing.