Homelessness

The Housing & Community Services Division in the Community Development Department strives to improve the quality of life for Winston-Salem residents in partnership with nonprofits, housing developers, and other community partners by providing the funding and assisting with the coordination of services for those experiencing homelessness within Winston-Salem/Forsyth County. The Housing & Community Services Division monitors and reports program successes to federal, state, and local funding partners. The City of Winston-Salem, along with nonprofit agencies, Forsyth County, local healthcare providers and other homeless service agencies collaborate through a unique partnership, known as the Continuum of Care (CoC), to eliminate homelessness in our community.

The Continuum of Care (CoC) Program is designed to promote communitywide action in the goal of ending homelessness. Funding is provided to local nonprofit agencies to quickly rehouse homeless individuals and families. The Continuum of Care promotes access to and effective utilization of mainstream programs by homeless individuals and families and optimizes self-sufficiency among individuals and families experiencing homelessness. The goal of the Continuum of Care program is to plan, implement, and operate an optimized homeless crisis response system that assures homelessness is rare, brief, and non-recurring for people in our community.

For homeless assistance in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County please call the Coordinated Intake Center at 336-721-9327 or 211. For more information about the Continuum of Care (CoC) please visit endhomelessnessforsyth.org.

The City of Winston-Salem serves as the Collaborative Applicant for Continuum of Care and Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG) funds from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. The City, in collaboration with the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County CoC and its member agencies, coordinates annual grant submissions on behalf of all stakeholders requesting funding to provide homelessness services.

These submissions are reviewed by a group of community members, termed the Rating Panel. This panel is comprised of local advocates, persons with lived experience of homelessness, business owners, students, and various other walks of life. If you are interested in becoming a rating panel member, please complete and submit an application.

Rating Panel Application (PDF)

The City of Winston-Salem allocates various funding sources to assist households who are experiencing homelessness, and to prevent households from experiencing homelessness.

These funds are:

Continuum of Care (CoC) Funds: Eligible activities, also referred to as eligible cost categories, are the allowable uses of CoC Program funds. The CoC Program regulations specify which costs are eligible for each program component, and they vary from one program component to another.

CoC eligible costs/activities are:

Acquisition
Rehabilitation
New Construction
Leasing
Rental Assistance
Supportive Services to include case management, life skills, and employment services.
Operating Costs
Homeless Management Information System (HMIS)
Project Administration

Emergency Solutions Grant (ESG): The ESG program provides funding to: (1) engage homeless individuals and families living on the street; (2) improve the number and quality of emergency shelters for homeless individuals and families; (3) help operate these shelters; (4) provide essential services to shelter residents, (5) rapidly re-house homeless individuals and families, and (6) prevent families/individuals from becoming homeless. Transitional housing is not eligible for funding.

For homeless assistance including, emergency shelter services in Winston-Salem/Forsyth County please call the Coordinated Intake Center at 336-721-9327.

Housing Opportunities for Persons With HIV/AIDS (HOPWA): The HOPWA (Housing Opportunities for Persons with HIV/AIDS) program provides housing and supportive services within the 5-county geographical region consisting of Forsyth, Davie, Davidson, Yadkin, and Stokes County, to low-income people living with HIV (PLWH). The goal of the HOPWA program is to ensure that affordable housing options and related housing services are available to low-income persons living with HIV/AIDS and their families, and to assist them in achieving and maintaining housing stability, thereby avoiding homelessness, and improving their access to and engagement in treatment and care. The HOPWA program provides funding to: (1) Rapidly rehousing PLWH individuals and families (2) Provide emergency housing services for PLWH and families; (3) Provide transitional housing and facility-based housing as PLWH individuals and families move to permanent housing; and (4) Provide supportive services that helps clients manage their HIV/AIDS healthcare needs, including mental health and transportation services.

For more instance with HOPWA please contact Positive Wellness Alliance at: 336-722-0976.

Please visit the Funding Opportunities page to receive information about any available funding.