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Service providers urge Newport News to fund homelessness, street outreach and dental care during budget hearing
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Summary
Leaders from LINC/Port, Help Inc. and a community street team told the council that homelessness and demand for basic services are rising; speakers requested recurring local support and CSAG grant backing to expand shelter, outreach and dental care.
Several nonprofit leaders and community organizers told the Newport News City Council during public comment that homelessness and unmet basic needs are growing and asked the council to provide sustained funding rather than one-time grants.
Elizabeth Parker, identified herself as a representative of Port/LINC, told the council, “We served over 825 unhoused guests” this season and said about 45% of those guests were newly homeless. She said Port provided roughly 31,000 meals during its season and described steeper increases in seniors and working-age adults who lack stable housing. Parker urged the council to consider those trends when deciding grant allocations, including the city’s CSAG program.
Matthew Stern, executive director of Help Incorporated, said his organization recently moved a dental clinic to Newport News and now cares for “over 600 patients” while providing “nearly $300,000 worth of dental care each year.” Stern warned impending state and federal changes to Medicaid and health insurance could reduce dental coverage for older recipients and increase emergency-department visits for dental pain. He asked the council to support Help Inc.’s CSAG request to expand preventive services and relieve pressure on emergency care.
Al Harris, speaking for Cool Foundation and Community Street Team, urged the creation of a recurring budget line to sustain street outreach work. He told council members the group has intervened to stop fights and prevent potential gun violence and asked the city to back those efforts with a permanent funding stream, proposing a budget line equal to 2 percent of the city’s general fund in order to embed the work into infrastructure rather than rely on one-time dollars.
Why it matters: speakers presented service-level data and first-hand accounts to argue that short-term funding will not meet a rising need for shelter, outreach and medical prevention; several asked the council to prioritize recurring support through CSAG or a dedicated line item.
The council voted 7-0 to close the public hearing immediately after the comment period.
