In April 2006, the City of Wichita and Sedgwick County jointly appointed a Task Force to End Chronic Homelessness (TECH). The TECH produced the Plan to End Chronic Homelessness which includes five recommendations.
Plan to End Chronic Homelessness
The Housing First program is one of the recommendations from the TECH report and is funded by the City and County. It provides rent and utility payments to persons meeting the HUD definition of chronic homelessness. City and County staff oversee the leasing component of the program; case managers from several community programs provide on-going case management assistance to program participants.
The City of Wichita also provides funding to local service providers to provide shelter and homeless prevention services. These services are funded from the HEARTH Act Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) Program.
In addition to shelter and prevention services, ESG funds are also used for the Rapid Re-Housing program which pays for rent and utilities necessary to house homeless persons in private housing.