Advisory Committee on Homelessness

Advisory Committee on Homelessness July 28, 2026 @ 5:15 PM Council Chambers, City Hall, 73 Harlow St. Agenda 1. Elect Chair, Vice Chair, and Secretary 2. Update on Facilitator Selection RFP 3. Discuss Public Comment Structure and Schedule a. Public Input Email 4. City Staff Info & Data Memorandum To: Advisory Committee on Homelessness From: Robyn Stanicki, Community Development Officer Date: July 23, 2026 Subject: Discussion of Available Data on Homelessness in Bangor The Committee on Homelessness has been asked to examine one of Bangor’s most persistent and complex public challenges. This memo brings together information already assembled through the City’s 2026–2030 Consolidated Plan, Maine Continuum of Care and HUB 7 materials, local shelter and service data, municipal program records, and other state and regional sources. The analysis is organized into five domains, presenting tonight the first three: 1. Scope and Characteristics; 2. Conditions Leading to Homelessness; 3. Population Movement and Regional Responsibility; 4. The Homelessness Response System; and 5. Individual and Community Impacts. Within each Domain, we break down our analysis with what we know, why it matters, and what we still need to learn. Together, these materials form the basis of shared understanding for the Committee to move forward. Committee members may request additional data to answer specific questions, however some data was unavailable in the time allotted, and other metrics simply are not measured at this time. The Committee in the future may want to analyze and discuss the Homeless Response Systems and Individual and Community Impacts as additional Domains for consideration. REPORTS, PLANS, AND OTHER SOURCES The data contained here include city-produced plans and reports as well as those found in Federal, State, and local metrics. The information is summarized with the relevant key points; however, further reading may be required for added context. Below are a list of those sources and how to find them: Bangor Consolidated Plan for Housing and Community Development: This document provides a thorough analysis of homeless needs, system drivers, and housing concerns as principal discussions to inform the included housing, economic, and anti-poverty strategies. Bangor Comprehensive Housing Study: The analytical framework detailing systemic displacement, the loss of lower-income households, and zoning changes designed to accommodate Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH). Bangor Area Homeless Shelter Annual Report: Local shelter data overview detailing year-over-year operational volume and local shelter utilization. Penobscot Community Health Care (PCHC) Annual Report: PCHC tracks extensive clinical metrics regarding unhoused healthcare access. This report covers the Hope House Health & Living Center, which serves over 300 individuals per year. Maine Homeless Planning Central Clearinghouse: The master repository for state-level strategic coordination, HUD exchanges, and Coordinated Entry initiatives. Bangor Municipal Homelessness Response: The official dashboard managing the City’s direct response initiatives. This resource is currently in development. Maine 2026 Point-In-Time (PIT) Census Report: The official state registry breaking down the raw numbers, regional tracking spikes, and unsheltered population data. Maine Homeless System Re-Design Initiative: The structural roadmap focusing on rebuilding coordinated entry pipelines and scaling targeted supportive units. Maine’s Plan to End and Prevent Homelessness Blueprint: The core foundational text linking shelter stabilization directly to emergency medical, mental health, and substance use infrastructure Maine Statewide Homeless Council Directory: Active tracking dashboard managing Regional Council monthly operational updates and state legislative tracking. Maine Shared Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA): A collaborative report by Northern Light Health, PCHC, and the Maine CDC; this document frames homelessness as a top social concern, and details Bangor’s status as a “service center” drawing unhoused individuals from rural northern counties due to a lack of regional infrastructure. Bangor Maine Community Health Needs Assessment 2023-2027: In this report, the Vital Conditions for Health and Well- Being Framework, is nationally recognized as an asset-based model that moves beyond the social determinants of health to identify the essential elements needed for communities to thrive. Raw Data Sources: Encounter and service data from CDBG – funded programs, Bangor Community Action Team, and other sources that have been analyzed for use by the City’s departments. HOW TO READ THE DATA Homelessness data sources frequently measure different populations and answer different questions: Point-in-Time Count The Point-in-Time Count estimates sheltered and unsheltered homelessness on a single night. It is not an estimate of the total number of people who experience homelessness over the course of a year. Annual Service Utilization Shelter, outreach, General Assistance, healthcare, and other service records measure people or households served over a reporting period. Annual utilization will ordinarily exceed the number of beds or service spaces available on a single day because those resources are used by different people over time. Unique People and Service Encounters A dataset may report unique people, households, service episodes, visits, or encounters. Unless records are deduplicated, one person may appear more than once. Literal Homelessness and Housing Instability People staying outdoors, in shelters, or in other places not meant for habitation may meet the applicable federal definition of literal homelessness. People who are doubled-up, couch-surfing, temporarily staying with others, or at imminent risk of losing housing may be experiencing severe housing instability without appearing in the same count. DOMAIN 1: SCOPE AND CHARACTERISTICS How large is the population experiencing homelessness, how is it changing, and which populations are represented within it? What We Know The January 2026 PIT Count reported 362 individuals with no home, an increase of 50 people from the previous year and representing approximately 17 percent of the statewide total (2,126). Across the geography of HUB 7, the number of individuals active in the Coordinated Entry system is 725 as of this report. Of the regional total, 89 were completely unsheltered, significantly higher than the 57 unsheltered people counted in Hub 1 (Cumberland County area) despite having a much larger general population. While Maine’s overall sheltered numbers decreased by 17% due to pandemic-era motel programs, the statewide unsheltered population living outdoors hit a record high of 361 individuals. This means that one out of every four people living completely unsheltered in Maine is located in the Hub 7 region, and likely in Bangor itself. Bangor’s homelessness rate per-capita (per 10,000 residents) fluctuates between 126 and 142 individuals, roughly six to eight times the national average. The visible unhoused population has expanded over the last decade: City reports estimate that Bangor had only 25 to 30 unhoused individuals prior to 2019. The region has approximately 112 year-round shelter beds. Shelter capacity is substantially smaller than the number of people identified as homeless, although a one-night count and bed capacity are not directly interchangeable. More than 600 unique individuals reportedly used Bangor-area shelters during 2024–2025. Approximately 56 percent of shelter entrants reportedly came from an unsheltered location or another shelter. Approximately 18 percent of shelter entrants reportedly came from couch-surfing or temporary stays with others. Significant housing instability may exist before a person meets the definition of literal homelessness used in federal counts. Of 347 recorded shelter exits, nearly one-third were to places not meant for habitation, approximately 26 percent were to transitional or doubled-up arrangements, and approximately 16 percent were to permanent rental housing. More than 600 people reportedly moved through Coordinated Entry. Close to 90 percent reportedly accessed housing resources located in Bangor, demonstrating the concentration of regional resources within the City. Bangor contains more than 1,200 publicly supported housing units. These units provide an important long-term housing resource, but low turnover and limited waiting-list availability constrain access for newly homeless households. The City’s 2024 homelessness needs assessment identified 17 veterans and 24 unaccompanied youth in shelters. It also identified 20 people in households involving children, although the lack of a dedicated family shelter in Penobscot County makes family homelessness particularly difficult to measure. More recent dashboard figures identify substantially larger subpopulation totals, but their geographic scope and units of analysis require verification before they can be attributed specifically to Bangor or Service Hub 7. Of those individuals and families experiencing homelessness, the Homelessness Dashboard reports 20 veterans, 21 families, and 103 youth in HMIS. These figures illustrate the growing number of children that are homeless. Youth experiencing homelessness outside of shelter occupancy are supported by the City’s schools through the federal McKinney-Vinto program: In 2025-2026, the number of youth experiencing homelessness (defined as lacking a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence) reached 114 children, ending the school year with 31. The 83 other students have either moved to another region and school district, obtained permanent housing, or have graduated. Staff are currently estimating to start the year with 35 students experiencing homelessness, but are expecting that number to rise. Of those 35, six are staying in hotels/motels, one has inadequate housing, 16 are doubled up, one is couch surfing/living on the streets, one is in jail, three are living without their guardians, and seven are in shelters or transitional housing. Statewide evidence indicates substantial racial disproportionality in homelessness. Approximately 91 percent of Maine’s overall population is White, while about 58 percent of the people counted in the 2025 statewide PIT Count were White. Black or African American individuals represented more than 30 percent of the statewide homeless population, substantially exceeding their share of Maine’s general population. * *Comparable Bangor-specific data are not routinely available in statewide summaries, and the statewide patterns should not be assumed to apply to Bangor in precisely the same proportions. Nevertheless, the disparity is significant enough to warrant examination of whether local housing instability, access to services, and homelessness outcomes differ by race or ethnicity. DOMAIN 2: CONDITIONS RELATED TO HOMELESSNESS What housing, economic, health, family, and institutional conditions contribute to homelessness or make it difficult to regain stable housing? What We Know Homelessness rarely results from one isolated cause. It typically emerges from an interaction between structural conditions— especially housing cost and availability—and events that reduce household income, health, stability, or social support. Bangor contains more than 1,200 publicly supported housing units. These units provide an essential long-term resource, but low turnover and constrained waiting lists limit their availability to people newly seeking housing. Bangor’s housing shortage is serious, resulting from historic underproduction over the last several decades. The Comprehensive Bangor Housing Study reported that nearly 1,800 units are needed by 2032, representing a substantial share of Penobscot County’s 5,700-unit regional production goal. Nearly 700 are needed to house extremely low-income residents. The Bangor Housing Study further indicates a loss of over 2,000 households earning under $75,000 locally since 2012. This structural displacement means unhoused individuals ready to exit transitional shelters face a 5-to-7-year backlog for Section 8 vouchers, completely stalling the shelter-to-housing pipeline. City program data also demonstrate substantial economic vulnerability among households requesting assistance. For households with very limited income, even a modest rent increase, benefit interruption, vehicle repair, medical cost, family disruption, or temporary loss of employment may threaten housing stability. According to the Maine Justice Information Center, Bangor saw the highest number of Forcible Detainer Entry (FED) filings in the State of Maine from 2019 to 2023, with evictions increasing nearly 43% from pre-pandemic conditions. Of 1,514 households reportedly served through City programs during FY2024: • 852 were extremely low-income (income equal to the Federal Poverty Level); • 627 were low-income (income equal to or below 50% Area Median Income (AMI); and • 35 were moderate-income (income exceeding 50% AMI but below 80% AMI. The City’s General Assistance program met the needs of 1,122 individuals. GA is not limited to unhoused individuals, and in many instances, the funds resolve issues that could lead to a loss of housing. The City’s Rental Assistance program issued 144 project-based vouchers, allowing 173 people to move into safe housing. Of these individuals, 29 were unhoused. At this time, all remain housed. The Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program served 4,492 individuals, providing a critical touchpoint for families with children to seek emergency assistance. Staff report providing 9,165 referrals for health care and social services. Public Health staff also perform street outreach, housing stabilization, and clinical services. Over a period of ___, street outreach teams were successful in contacting 15 to 20 individuals per day to work on resource brokerage, housing, and daily case management. These staff also assisted in housing 25 individuals. Housing navigators work with tenants that are at risk of homelessness through eviction. They received approximately 170 referrals from shelters, transitional housing, landlords, property management companies, and local caseworkers. Of those assisted, 34 tenants avoided losing their home, 33 individuals found a new home, 14 tenants were evicted but were placed in assisted living, 6 tenants were evicted and placed in shelter, and no tenants were released back to the street. Clinical staff provided 270 vaccines to uninsured adults; services were also available at Wabanaki Public Health and Wellness to provide STI testing, vaccines, wound care, health education, and triage. The people being served were mainly unhoused and use substances (IV drugs). Over 31,335 Narcan kits were distributed by the City’s Health Promotion program, offering 29 trainings to administer them. Additional conditions that may contribute to or prolong homelessness include: • A limited supply of units affordable to extremely low-income households; • Inappropriate or unsupported housing placement of chronically homeless; • Low rental vacancy and competition for available units; • Security deposits and other initial occupancy costs; • Eviction or lease termination; • Housing quality or accessibility barriers; • Inability to use a voucher because an appropriate unit cannot be located; • Serious mental illness or chronic illness; • Substance-use disorders; • Domestic violence; • Family disruption and loss of informal support; • Involvement with corrections or other institutions; • Transportation barriers; • Loss of identification or documentation; • Limited access to communication; and • Trauma experienced before or during homelessness. What Remains Uncertain • Which events most often occur immediately before homelessness begins locally? • Which conditions initiate homelessness, and which primarily prolong it? • How many people are employed while experiencing homelessness? • How frequently do institutional discharges lead directly to shelters or unsheltered locations? • What prevents people who have income, benefits, or housing vouchers from securing an available unit? • How often does a housing placement fail, and what conditions contribute to a return to homelessness? DOMAIN 3: POPULATION MOVEMENT Where do people experiencing homelessness come from, why do they access services in Bangor, and how are responsibilities distributed across the region? What We Know Bangor is a regional center for shelter, healthcare, behavioral-health and substance-use treatment, transportation, courts, employment, housing navigation, public assistance, and other essential services. Its institutions serve residents of a broad geographic area, just as Bangor’s hospitals, employers, educational institutions, and businesses serve people who live outside the City. More than 600 people reportedly moved through Coordinated Entry, and close to 90 percent accessed housing resources located in Bangor. This demonstrates that homelessness resources are concentrated in the City. What Remains Uncertain • What is the most reliable measure of community of origin? • How often are people formally referred or transported to Bangor, and by whom? • Are origin, referral, and destination data collected consistently? • What do General Assistance, shelter, and Coordinated Entry records reveal about prior residences or recent evictions? • How much regional demand is absorbed by Bangor-based organizations and City departments? • How are prevention, housing, service, and municipal responsibilities shared across jurisdictions? Attached please find BCAT data from The Bangor Police Department as an additional data source. Respectfully Submitted, Robyn Stanicki, Community Development Officer robyn.stanicki@bangormaine.gov Bruce Hews, Homeless Response Coordinator bruce.hews@bangormaine.gov David Bushey, Deputy Chief of Police david.bushey@bangormaine.gov Stephen Urli, McKinnney-Vento Liaison, Bangor School Department surli@bangorschools.net