For the fourth year in a row, Connecticut’s homeless population grew by almost 10%. A report released earlier this month showed that 3,735 people in Connecticut are experiencing homelessness, approximately 0.001% of the total state population. In addition, 2,902 people were reported to be living in homeless shelters, while some estimates such as one from WTNH News 8 say the number could be as high as 5,000.

Connecticut’s annual Point-In-Time, an annual census of people who are experiencing homelessness, the report said the numbers have risen because there is a severe lack of affordable housing in the state.

The report said agencies that provide rental subsidies “continue to face an uphill battle trying to bridge the gap from what someone can afford versus how much they can subsidize.”

While the state has tried to increase the number of beds in shelters, there is still a need for more amid the increase in the homeless population. A separate report released in August by the National Low Income Housing Coalition said that Connecticut had the 11th highest housing wage – the amount of money needed to afford decent housing – in the nation. To afford a two-bedroom rental, a resident must make, $35.42 an hour. On average, though, people in Connecticut make $32 an hour and while this is one of the highest on average in the country, it isn’t enough, according to the report.

The city of New Haven has seven homeless shelters listed on their website. An increase in people who are unhoused would mean a need for more resources and space for people which could stretch shelters across the state thin.

“It’s a compounding impact of the affordable housing crisis, of not having enough permanent housing beds” said Sarah Fox, chief executive officer of the Connecticut Coalition to End Homelessness.

According to a recent CT Mirror article about so-called sweeps of law enforcement to clear people who are homeless out of public areas, the writer found that one of the people he interviewed was 937th on a list for a downtown shelter bed.

People who were able to get a bed said the facilities were lacking, both in supplies and in staff. To accommodate people who are unhoused within New Haven, some have resorted to building backyard communities such as the Rosette Neighborhood Village in the Hill neighborhood. This small village of small homes was built in a backyard in 2022 and remains standing despite legal battles with the city.

As for further actions from the state, a bill had been proposed that would encourage and increase affordable housing construction across the state. Gov. Ned Lamont decided to veto it due to opposition from some towns such as Greenwich, Southington and Westport among others over who controls the housing. Lamont has proposed a special session to consider a new version of the housing bill, but the session has not been called yet.