Winston-Salem advocates speak out against proposal to reduce funding for housing program

Winston-Salem advocates are criticizing a decision to cut funding for a homelessness prevention program in next year’s proposed budget. 

The city’s current budget proposal includes a 45% funding reduction for the United Way of Forsyth County’s Rapid Re-housing Collaborative. The program helps individuals experiencing homelessness quickly secure permanent housing through case management and supportive services.

At a public hearing this week, Debra McCluney with United Way urged the City Council to maintain support for the initiative.

“Fewer dollars mean fewer people housed. It means turning away families at the edge of crisis. It means more people in shelters, on the street and in unsafe conditions," she said. "And it means reversing hard-won progress in making homelessness rare, brief and non-recurring in our city."

Other speakers at the hearing called on the Council to prioritize the city’s environmental goals by investing in sustainability projects, including electric vehicle battery charging stations.

The final budget vote is scheduled for June 16.