Merced County homeless tally is set for early Thursday

The Merced County Continuum of Care is set to conduct a count of homeless people in the county on Thursday, the first tally since changing its method a year ago.

More than 100 volunteers are set to take to the streets early Thursday to count the sheltered and unsheltered homeless people of Merced County, according to a news release.

The census taken last year found 519 homeless people, a stark difference from the 899 reported the previous year. Part of the change was due to efforts to house the homeless, count organizers said, but was largely due to a change in the counting method.

The count was organized by the Continuum, a coalition of homeless advocates and service providers.

Merced City Manager Steve Carrigan, who is president of the Continuum, has said the new method is more accurate. This year’s tally will be the first to show comparable numbers to last year.

“The only way to solve homelessness in Merced County is to get an accurate number,” Carrigan said in a statement Tuesday. “This is so vitally important, so we can gauge our success after a year.”

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development requires a point-in-time count every two years, but the Continuum tallies the homeless annually.

Last year’s report revealed city-specific numbers for people on the streets, not including those in temporary housing, which amounts to 356. The city of Merced had 218 people living on the streets, while Los Banos had 64. Dos Palos and South Dos Palos counted 41; Atwater and Winton tallied 28; and Le Grand recorded five.

Tally volunteers will meet at the Hoffmeister Center, at 1920 Canal St., before breaking into small teams for the tally, according to the news release.

The official numbers aren’t expected until the second Homeless Summit from 8 to 11 a.m. Feb. 17 at the Merced Theatre, 301 W. Main St.

This story was originally published January 24, 2017 at 4:53 PM with the headline "Merced County homeless tally is set for early Thursday."