SALT LAKE CITY — Seventy-eight families are currently living on Salt Lake City’s streets, according to Lora Young with the South Valley Unitarian Universalist Society.
“We're in a real crisis point," she said. "We have to take action today. Utah is a state that prides itself on caring for families and children. We have a long history of that."
The Coalition of Religious Communities rallied outside the Utah Governor’s Mansion Saturday afternoon, demanding Gov. Spencer Cox spend the state's $2 billion budget surplus on an expanded hotel voucher program and more caseworkers on the streets.
“If there were that many families that were displaced by a flood or a fire and the state didn't have a way to figure things out, they would call a special session and shift money from this fund to that fund," said Bill Tibbitts, the deputy executive director of Crossroads Urban Center. "We're saying that this is a crisis.”
In a press conference Thursday, Cox addressed Salt Lake City’s homeless crisis.
“You have to have some place for people to go," he said. "We're going to be opening soon additional shelter space for emergency shelter, as winter months are now coming upon us.”
The governor said his biggest priority right now is reducing the cost of housing.
“There are people who are in shelters now that are ready for housing," Cox said. "We need more housing to get them into.”
Although there are long-term solutions on the horizon, families are about to be outside in freezing temperatures — and Tibbitts said Utah needs to do something now.
“We don't want to become a community that's comfortable with seeing homeless toddlers and babies and little kids," he said.
In response to Saturday's rally, Utah's State Homeless Coordinator Wayne Niederhauser issued the following statement:
"We are aware of unhoused Utah families in need of shelter and are actively working with service providers, cities, counties, and advocates to create safe options for them as part of our 2022-2023 winter overflow plan. In Salt Lake County, there will be hotel/motel vouchers available for families provided by The Road Home and additional resources are being explored throughout the state. Families can call 2-1-1 for help."
