U.S. City Wants to End Homelessness – and Plans to Do so This Year

Rockford, Illinois may soon become the very first community in the United States to end homelessness for all: the city is planning to have its homeless population reach a “functional zero” by the end of this year.

Reaching “functional zero” means getting to a place where, in the rare event that someone does end up homeless, it will be quickly and efficiently resolved.

“I think for so long we believed in most communities that homelessness is just something we are going to have to live with,” says Beth Sandor, co-director of the Built to Zero program at Community Solutions, which works with cities on ending homelessness. “Rockford is in the process of transforming that idea and really demonstrating what it looks like to live in a community where homelessness is not normal.”

In 2018, the city became the first in the country to end veteran homelessness, and the second city to end it for those who are chronically homeless. Now, Rockford will be the first to end homelessness for all remaining populations.