More People are Homeless in Dane County with Frigid Times on the Way

Madison Commons

In 2006, nearly 3,500 homeless people spent at least one night in a Dane County shelter, according to a Madison Community Development Office report. And that number has increased about 6 percent over the last couple years.

“The number one reason [for that increase] is the general economy, and the slimming down of jobs,” said Hickory Hurie, director of the Community Development Office for the City of Madison. “And no it is not an influx from another city or other state; it does not appear to be a conspiracy on the part of banks.”

In mid-November the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s graduate journalism students canvassed the city to talk to homeless people, volunteers and businesses about the situation in Madison as winter approaches.

The three multi-media projects include:

• Steve Furay, Rachel Owens, and Doug Shore talked to Wesley, a homeless man near the Madison Public Library, about his Thanksgiving and his search for shelter during the winter.

• Brian Day, Nathan Hebert, and Kellie Gushiken visited Porchlight’s homeless drop-in shelter program and met five volunteers there.

• Finally, Niki Denison, Bill Andrews and Rachel White produced a slide show of their interviews with employees of State Street businesses about the homeless that hang out in popular Madison gathering spots.

The students were both distressed at the existence of the men, women and families who survive on the streets and heartened at the benevolence of residents and volunteers.

“One of the unique things about Madison is there are a number of community-based groups that are doing a lot of work with homeless people. For a city our size, Madison has far fewer homeless on the streets that some cities,” Hurie added. “And yet these numbers mean nothing for the people who are homeless.”