More than 1,600 volunteers across the county took part in this year’s Point in Time Count, counting and interviewing unsheltered residents throughout the region from 4-8 a.m. on Jan. 26.

The annual Point in Time Count is led by the Regional Task Force on Homelessness (RTFH) as part of a federal funding mandate. It also helps RTFH learn more about the people experiencing homelessness while raising awareness about the crisis, what’s working, and where opportunities exist. Last year’s census found 4,106 were experiencing unsheltered homelessness in San Diego County.

“This count is a snapshot of what homelessness looks like in our region at a minimum,” RTFH CEO Tamera Kohler said. “While the data it generates is important and valuable, it’s the experience and the interactions that make this annual census so meaningful. Thank you to our volunteers for your efforts in taking part in the count and returning some humanity to those who are sleeping outside.”

Organizations like the Downtown San Diego Partnership lean in on this vital issue and provide support for the Point in Time Count, including opening up their office as a command center and hosting a post-Count press conference.

“We’re grateful to work with partners like the Regional Task Force on Homelessness who bring additional awareness to the homelessness crisis in Downtown and across the region,” said Betsy Brennan, president and CEO of the Downtown San Diego Partnership.

“The data collected during the census will help us better understand the circumstances of our unhoused neighbors and how we can continue to work with the city, county, and service providers to create solutions that will meet their needs. The annual #WeAllCount effort also is a crucial step to identifying areas of need like Downtown and securing resources to create meaningful change for our unhoused neighbors,” Brennan said.

Community Housing Works CEO and RTFH CoC advisor board chair Sean Spear was among the volunteers who canvassed the county on Jan. 26.

“This is important work, eye-opening work, that informs the work so many providers and others do every day to assist those experiencing homelessness,” Spear said. “We are making strides but as we heard today on the streets, we need to do more. There’s much more to do to make homelessness a brief and rare occurrence.”

At the news conference, Council President Sean Elo-Rivera expressed a wide range of emotions. He said he was saddened by what he saw, encouraged by the volunteer effort, and frustrated that in 2023 in San Diego it takes 1,600 people working several hours to count the number of people living on the streets.

“We heard sad story after sad story today so the question is going to be, ‘What will the count look like next year?’ Elo-Rivera said. “So what are we willing to do to prevent homelessness? Every single San Diegan has an opportunity to take part in ensuring that this doesn’t have to be such a huge effort every single year.”

This year’s Count concluded on Friday, Jan. 27, with RTFH staff returning to specific areas to ensure known hotspots were not missed. The data collected by the 2023 Point in Time Count will be released later this year by RTFH.

“It rained a lot last year leading up to the count so we expect this year’s number to be higher since so many people last year found a hotel bed or another form of shelter to escape the rain,” Kohler said. “This year, it was dry and not as cold as last year, so we were able to locate more people. Their stories are often difficult to hear but are all too familiar. Most of these folks are from here and many of them just fell on hard times. They lost a job or missed a rent payment. They need a helping hand.”

Councilmember Raul Campillo said: “We shouldn’t be walking past homeless individuals and ignoring them. Look them in the eye and ask them how they’re doing. Say ‘Good morning.’ Say ‘Good evening.’ Have that conversation with them and you will realize that the policies we’re trying to pass at the city and county levels are trying to help people get into housing, and a lot of people who push back on those ideas – I think they will realize the humanity of the people that many of us talked to this morning deserve to recognized… We’re trying to get people the help they deserve because housing solves homelessness.”