Homeless man on a cold day
The Pima County Board of Supervisors has approved partnering with the University of Utah on a project to fight homelessness through private investment.
If it is eventually funded by the federal government, the first goal of "Pay fotr Success" will be to get homeless people off the streets and into permanent housing, then provide other help such as mental health treatment or job training, said Margaret Kish, director of community development with Pima County.
“The intervention is housing first, and then looking at various models and services that could be provided to the individual to help them become more stable, more independent and stay out of jail systems," Kish said.
She explained that the program would be based on a in which private donors would put up the money for transition programs, and the federal government would reimburse them based on the proven effectiveness of each program:
“It's the funders that put the upfront money for the intervention, and they get paid back with some level of interest based upon the riskiness of the project," she said.
The county is working with the University of Utah because it is one of a handful of institutions specializing in the “Pay for Success” model.
The goal is to reduce the number of homeless people in the Pima County Jail.
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