Dallas

How Dallas Deals with the Homeless

The City of Dallas, along with a slew of voluntary, charitable and faith-based organizations, has been extraordinarily diligent in recognizing the needs of the city's homeless. More than forty-five agencies—in addition to various departments of the City of Dallas, Dallas County, and the state of Texas—are currently providing a wide range of housing, food, medical and employment services to these individuals. Dallas's delivery system can be best described as “fragmented” in that homeless persons must visit a number of different sites in order to avail themselves of the full range of services.

The “official” homeless programs administered by the City of Dallas are managed by the Department of Environmental and Health Services (DEHS). In fiscal 1999–2000, the department reportedly spent $4,329,913 on eight different programs funded primarily by HUD. Less than 7 percent of this total—$301,907—came from own source revenues. The vast majority of expenditures were allocated to shelters, health care, and day resources.

DEHS expenditures, however, represent only a portion of city outlays related to homeless individuals and families. Homeless persons also use a number of services provided by voluntary and faith-based institutions as well as by Dallas County. For example, most homeless persons and families receive medical care from Parkland Hospital, a county facility. They also impose “costs” on the city and county to the extent they use police time, stay in local jails, appear in court, or become patients in a detoxification center. The Central Citizens Association has estimated that the total public and private costs of providing services to Dallas’ nearly 4,000 homeless persons is more than $20 million annually.

Central Business District Property Valuation Comparison: North versus South

Any visitor to downtown Dallas is struck by the disparities in development between the northern and southern halves of the central business district (DCBD). The northern half is dominated by relatively new high-rise office buildings while the southern half is characterized by older low-rise structures and vacant land. Though some redevelopment is occurring in the southern sector, the pace of growth has been extremely slow. The visible concentration of Dallas’homeless population may be one impediment to the commercial revival of the southern sector.