The providers are now being asked to help newly homeless or short-term homeless people, including panhandlers. But his remarks reflected a new effort by the Department of Homeless Services to better understand who is panhandling, why they are begging and how the city can help them get off the streets. “I could have been sitting on a bench.”The city has a list of 2,000 names of people who live on the street, Mr. Banks said. It takes an average of five months to establish trust and get people indoors, according to the Homeless Services Department. “More permanent housing is the solution.”That is the solution the city would like, too, Mr. Banks said.

Source: New York Times July 19, 2017 13:30 UTC