Frequently Asked Questions
Based on the current, initially planned solution.
Citizens Again is a project to create a single, supportive living environment for America’s entire chronic street homeless adult population.
It will be a secure, all-inclusive city, with all the amenities and services necessary for a 150,000 high-needs population. The City will cook meals, perform laundry services, provide entertainment and activities, and much more.
The City will be able to house America’s entire adult chronic street homeless population.
This subset of the homeless – the chronic street homeless – are the most resource-intensive and costly segment of the homeless population because many of them suffer from mental illness, struggle with physical disabilities, battle drug/alcohol addictions, or can’t find jobs/housing because of criminal convictions. This segment is approximately 20% of the homeless population, yet they consume over 80% of the annual federal budget for homelessness.
The location will be announced at a later date, but the site will require approximately 500+ acres (about 300 acres for the livable area, and the rest for the perimeter for facilities, etc.). Ideally, it will be located in a moderate climate, on mostly flat land, with access to transportation, and in a vicinity of a workforce for staffing. And it will be located far outside the urban core so as not to upset existing residential neighborhoods.
Conditions for the chronic homeless population are worsening; yet decades of efforts haven’t made a dent in this crisis. It’s time to think differently to solve one of society’s most critical issues.
This is not a quick fix. The project started in May 2017, publicly announced in December 2019, the preliminary estimated open date is 2031, and it is anticipated to take about 2 years to reach target capacity. All future dates are dependent on funding and government interactions. This is drastically shorter than the Government’s predicted 200-year effort.
Interested potential citizens will go to processing centers across the country. Eligibility will be determined there, along with citizen processing and initial healthcare checkups and hygiene services. They will then travel via trains, planes, buses, etc., to the City.
Upon arriving, they will go through an onboarding process with additional healthcare checkups and services, orientation programs, and more.
It’s vital to ensure integration success. So after onboarding tasks are completed, citizens will be introduced into the City with guided tours and will be assigned a fellow citizen Buddy to guide them around and answer questions. Every citizen will have a designated staff counselor and will have daily check-ins during the integration period to help with the integration process.
Citizens are in control of their everyday activities: some might choose to work city or on-site industry jobs, and some may choose to simply participate in any of the activities the City has to offer.
Qualified citizens choose to live in the City, and they are free to leave at any time. However, once they leave, there will be a waiting period for reentry to discourage frequent departures.
The City will have the space for ALL chronic homeless adults in America, and this project is working on creating overwhelming reasons for every aspect of the chronic homeless to want to live here, as well as want to stay. But ultimately, it is up to each individual to choose to live here.
There are over 560,000 homeless in America as of 2018. Citizens Again focuses on the most costly and most resource intensive segment of that group: chronic homeless adults, which consists of about 100,000 people. Therefore, housing programs will still be needed for over 460,000 homeless people.
There are approximately 100,000 chronic homeless adults in America. The City will be designed and built for the possibility of future homeless population increases.
Families and children have different sets of needs such as k-12 education, pediatric healthcare, and more. In addition, many citizens could put children at risk living in the city. However, if any of the approximately 30,000 chronic homeless that live in shelters or existing housing decide to relocate and live in the City, that would free up that space for homeless families to get off streets.
The City will use the Federal government’s definition of “chronic homeless” as explained in their Defining Chronic Homeless guide as a guideline.
People use drugs and alcohol to escape their pain. Citizens Again will provide a better environment along with support systems to improve their life, so it is believed – and some support programs have shown – that improved living conditions and supportive environments helps people break their addictions.
Citizens will be free to leave any time, with transportation provided. Once they leave, there will be a 6-month waiting period for reentry to discourage frequent departures. Exceptions to the waiting period would be for family events and emergencies.
Yes. With so many amenities, and support systems, it is possible others in need may reside in the City for short periods to take advantage of the counseling and psychiatric care and health care amenities. For example, returning veterans may live in the City to address PTSD issues and prepare for reentry into society; non-chronic homeless may arrive for surgery that would be cost-prohibitive in private hospitals; and more. These are areas that would be explored for possibilities.