Ending homelessness a lofty, worthwhile goal

Much work has been done to combat homelessness in La Crosse. And much more work is about to be done. The city of La Crosse is taking part in a collaborative effort to end all homelessness in the city. It is an ambitious goal, but there is a good track record. Already, the city, along with the La Crosse Collaborative to End Homelessness, has been successful in finding shelter for all homeless military veterans in the city. The next goal is much bigger, to literally end all homelessness in the city. Much of that effort will focus on a wooded area known as Riverside North, where at any given time, dozens of homeless are sleeping in tents. There are health concerns with all those people living in a space not intended for human habitation. There are concerns about waste disposal, drug use, and dangerous flash flooding. The plan is to find all those now camping out on the former Mobil Oil site housing. The Salvation Army will open up more space if its shelter is full. The Franciscan Hospitality House will also offer services to help the homeless find housing. The message is that anyone who is currently staying outside should have access to housing. And ambitiously, the goal is to find housing for all the homeless living in the city by the end of this month. With so many groups working so diligently on this collaborative effort, and a proven track record of success, it is hard to think they won’t again be successful.