Just as the stereotype of a homeless person might be a single man, the mental picture of supportive housing might be an apartment building with tiny units, an office and a counseling staff.

But what about the families and children?

Preliminary results from the most recent Point in Time homeless count for New London County on Jan. 30 found 25 families with 54 children living in shelters in the region. Another 29 families with 55 children currently are living in temporary transitional housing, most of which mandate short stays. Shelters and short-term transitional housing count as homeless situations.

“Thank God, we did not find any families living in the streets,” said David Pascua, co-coordinator of the Point in Time count and housing coordinator for the Southeastern Mental Health Authority.

While much of the talk on ending homelessness has centered on housing for individuals living in the streets, several state and local agencies also are working to bring families under stable roofs with accompanying support services to try to keep them there.

The Women's Center of Southeastern Connecticut believes it has found the right formula.

“The concept is scattered sites, and not have it in a single building with support offices,” said Catherine Zeiner, executive director of the Women's Center of Southeastern Connecticut. “This is a way to really integrate the families in the communities, and no single community feels like they are being burdened. The families don't feel they are in an institution. They feel like they are in their own homes.”

The Women's Center and the Corporation for Independent Living, a private developer of affordable and supportive housing buildings throughout the state, obtained a $1.1 million state grant through the state Planning and Implementing Housing Options for Long-term Success program, called PILOTS, to launch a supportive housing model for families.

CIL received a $1.1 million grant through the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority last year to purchase and renovate four houses with a combined total of seven living units for the program. PILOTS works as a collaboration among CHFA, the state Department of Social Services, which provides tenants with rental subsidies and the state Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, which provides annual funding to the Women's Center for support services for the families.

The closings on the final two properties, a two-family house in Norwich and a two-family house in New London, were held last week, finalizing the deal, but officials said the families already had moved into their new homes. The first families moved into their homes last February, and the final two moved in last fall.

In total, the Women's Center runs seven supportive housing units for families — two two-family houses in Norwich, one in New London and a single-family house in Montville. Although the locations of the houses are on file in public land records, Zeiner asked that the addresses not be disclosed. Residents in the houses also declined to be interviewed about their situations.

But Zeiner offered a summary picture of the clientele. The families must be “chronically homeless” — homeless for a full year or who have experienced four incidences of homelessness within the past three years.

Families must have children to qualify for the Women's Center program. Five of the families are headed by a single mother, one family has a mother and father and a single father heads another. Zeiner said the agency was pleased to be able to provide housing for a father in need, because the Women's Center would like to reach out more to fathers.

Most of the families have one child, but there are some larger families, she said. The children range in age from an infant to about 14 years old.

All participating families also must have some form of income – from employment, Social Security, or other sources. Families pay rent of 30 percent of that income for their rent. The families typically pay a few hundred dollars a month, she said, although some families may start by paying as little as $5 or $10 a month.

CIL owns the houses and leases them to the residents, and the Women's Center runs the support programs out of their own offices. No support staff members live with the families. With supportive housing, the families are allowed to stay indefinitely as long as they pay rent and comply with terms of the lease, said CIL President and Chief Executive Officer Martin Legault. Their monthly rental payments would rise with their incomes if they obtain better jobs or qualify for Social Security disability.

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Although the Women's Center program is new, CIL has worked with the state PILOTS housing program for the past several years and now owns 29 supportive housing units for individuals or families statewide, including four with programs run by Reliance House in Norwich.

In all, Legault said, only two tenants have been evicted over the years “for typical landlord-tenant situations.” He said neither was for nonpayment of rent.

Paying for utilities is the biggest challenge, Zeiner said. Tenants are responsible for their own utility bills. While Connecticut Light & Power and Norwich Public Utilities can work out payment plans and legally cannot shut off tenants during the winter, heating oil companies need payment up front for deliveries.

Finances and household budgeting are among several issues Zeiner termed as “barriers to staying housed.” Women's Center staff work to steer families to mental health or behavioral health counselors or domestic abuse counselors for both the parents and the children.

Case managers might help families fill out forms to apply for food stamps and work with the families on how to provide nutritious meals on a tight budget. They help with complex application forms to obtain Social Security or other subsidies and may help families apply for special education services for the children.

If child support payments are an issue, Zeiner said the state offers confidential mailing addresses for families who don't want the estranged former partner to know their whereabouts.

Zeiner said the Women's Center receives a total of $63,000 per year from DMHAS per year to provide all the case management services for the seven families. That's the same amount the state agency would provide to an agency with seven supportive housing units for single individuals, Zeiner said.

She said the true costs are closer to $85,000, and the Women's Center uses revenue through fundraisers and other grants to cover the shortfall.

Beverly Goulet, Norwich Human Services director and co-chairwoman of the Partnership to End Homelessness of Southeastern Connecticut, said the Women's Center program for families is a critical component of the region's 10-year plan to end homelessness, and she hopes accompanying funding will recognize the need to serve families.

“We were very excited to get these units,” Goulet said. “So many people when they think of homelessness they think of individuals 65 years old... We've got to get away from these stereotypes.”

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