“All In Clark County is about coming together as a community to reset the conversation and respond thoughtfully to our communities’ most vulnerable neighbors,” said United Way Executive Director Chad Wilson. “This planning effort recognizes the importance of co-developing meaningful and lasting solutions that account for both immediate needs and longer-term challenges many Clark County residents have faced. Our goal is to build solutions that are fair, practical, and rooted in community voice.”
The process will create a strategic implementation plan aimed at helping Springfield and Clark County respond more effectively to homelessness, reduce the length of time a person experiences homelessness, use limited resources “more strategically and transparently,” and improve partnerships between housing, health, behavioral health and other systems.
There will be three phases:
- System assessment and community engagement, which entails data review and listening to those with “lived experience,” service providers and community partners
- Plan development, where partners will together develop shared priorities and local strategies
- Final plan, implementation and accountability, where partners will finalize a plan and create necessary infrastructure
The project is funded by a Community Development Block Grant from the state, according to the release. Planners will work to align it with Springfield 2051.
The planning effort will engage focus groups, interviews and “co-visioning and design sessions” to involve the community, according to the release. There will be targeted outreach to people who have experienced homelessness and housing instability, as well as new and long-time residents, historically underserved communities, service providers, employers, faith leaders and public agencies.
The core team includes Clark County; the city of Springfield; the United Way of Clark, Champaign, and Madison Counties; and Element Consulting Group LLC, a Columbus-based independent planning consultant. There will be a broader steering committee.
A housing shortage is just one of the factors in Springfield’s homelessness crisis. Participants in the initiative also identified several other key issues: limited access to decent, income-aligned housing; structural inequities; workforce and income challenges; and needs related to health, behavioral health, substance use, and disabilities. Additionally, they noted “barriers faced by new neighbors, including language access, documentation, and system navigation.”
Springfield has seen a rapid increase in people experiencing homelessness at least since the COVID-19 pandemic. The only local shelter operator, Sheltered Inc., which has experienced years of financial instability, announced late last year it will likely close both its shelters come March due to a lack of consistent funding.
Sheltered Inc. lost a portion of its county administered funds meant to be used for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or Prevention, Retention and Contingency (PRC) services in 2023.
In 2024, Clark County filed a civil lawsuit against Sheltered Inc. for breach of contract and is seeking reimbursement of more than $500,000. This lawsuit stems from a county allegation that the nonprofit mismanaged funds meant for TANF or PRC services, which provide work support and other services to low-income families.
The lawsuit alleges that Sheltered Inc. did not provide proper documentation for reimbursements and submitted invoices for expenses not allowed under the program, including staff salaries, utilities, rent, insurance, office supplies, gasoline, facility maintenance/repairs, contracted personnel, hotels, gas cards, bus passes, meals and birth records.
The issues were reportedly found through a state audit of the Department of Job and Family Services.
Sheltered Inc. has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing.
About the Author
