I have a love-hate relationship with spreadsheets. I love how they can organize information, reveal relationships, and generally make sense of what can be confusing amounts of data. But I also have to confess that I hate it when numbers (data) get thrown on a spreadsheet without any consistency, analysis, cross-checking, or even basic column-totaling. You know, as in the "2024 Housing Inventory Count" spreadsheet someone sent me this week, which you'll find attached to this email. To call it a "Housing Inventory" is being somewhat generous. It's more of a "potential shelter spaces & beds" list (one I've never seen before, and I've been tracking this stuff since 2019) that blurs the lines between such things as emergency shelters (ES), transitional housing (TH), permanent supportive housing (PSH) and a couple more. Hang on, and I'll explain.
Back To the PIT Count & Shelter Beds
Allow me to take you back to my June 14th email addressing the results of the 2024 PIT Count, where I said: "In June of 2024 (as of today), the published shelter capacity stands at 947, not the 1,381 stated on the City's web page. (I've attached a PDF with two charts, one showing shelter capacity for 2023 & 2024 based on ShelterMeSpokane, and the other showing shelter capacity compared with PIT Count Numbers). The City's web page says its shelter capacity numbers are "according to the Housing Inventory Count that was held in conjunction with the PIT Count." Again, where is that information publicly accessible? If the City is going to use these numbers, then the City has an obligation to specify where those emergency shelter beds are located."
I'm attaching the spreadsheet data that is the source of the City's shelter capacity claim of 1,381. It appears to be a report to HUD (see Column A of the report). If so, I have some concerns ranging from data errors to outright misrepresentation. To make sense of it, I've had to do some "lite" editing, things like totaling up columns and creating formulas to make sense of what's being presented. Whoever put this together didn't really finish what they started. If they had, they might have noticed a few things.
The 1,381 shelter capacity number. Of the 100 "housing options" listed in this Inventory, 28 of them are classified as "Emergency Shelters." I don't know about you, but I was completely unaware that we have 28 emergency shelters in Spokane. If you add all of those 28 "shelters" and their alleged bed numbers, it comes to 1,364 (they miscounted by 17),
whereas the City of Spokane's shelter dashboard currently lists 11 Emergency Shelters with 947 beds. Is anybody confused yet?
When Spreadsheet Don't Add Up. Spreadsheets can be very unforgiving, especially to those who aren't careful about the data they input. And there are numbers in this Inventory that simply don't add up or simply don't make sense. For example, Columns AC, AD, and AE are designed to create a shelter capacity utilization percentage for each shelter, showing how many beds were filled during the PIT Count. The percentage should be created with a formula that divides column AC (the number of beds) into column AD (the number of people in the shelter), producing a percentage in column AE (% Utilization). Easy-Peasy. But instead of creating a formula for the spreadsheet to calculate the % automatically, they just typed in raw numbers. I had to fix that in my edited version. But there's more. They also didn't bother to create a SUM for Column AD (the PIT Count for that shelter). If they had, they would have noticed that the SUM for the PIT is 4,121 against an actual PIT count of only 2,021, for a difference that's DOUBLE the actual PIT count. It's a rookie mistake (not totaling columns and cross-checking results), but it throws the validity of the numbers into serious question.
The City of Spokane V. Family Promise. Looking at my attached "2024 Housing Inventory Shelter Analysis" you'll note that the City of Spokane (line 13) is credited with having 100 emergency shelter beds, while Family Promise (line 28) is credited with 0. Why? Because no one double-checked what they were doing. The information and numbers attributed to the City of Spokane are actually the numbers for Family Promise (100 beds). I'm sorry, but that's just sloppy work. Also, UGM Men's Shelter is listed as having 200 beds, while UGM has been consistently listed (for several years) as having 125 emergency shelter beds available. Why the 75-bed difference? I'm guessing that those 75 beds are "program beds," set aside exclusively for men participating in the UGM recovery program, not for use as night-to-night shelter beds.
When Did This Happen? This "Housing Inventory Count" utilizes a dramatically expanded definition of "Emergency Shelter" that has never been previously published. When did this happen, and where was this new policy openly discussed? The traditional definition of an "Emergency Shelter" is one where a person can show up at the shelter door at check-in time and get a bed for the night, if there's space available. I would question whether that is true of several of the names I see on this list.
Transparency Builds Trust, And This Hasn't Been Transparent. There, I've said it. I'm all in favor of more shelter capacity. But this feels like a manufactured report that lacks transparency or credibility. If these additional 417 shelter beds, located in an additional 17 "Emergency Shelters," are real and available, why hasn't this list been published and circulated before now? Can anyone experiencing homelessness show up at the door at check-in and get a bed? What's the phone number and who should they call to get in? I'm publishing and circulating this Inventory for reasons of transparency, and you'll find the original spreadsheet attached to this email. You'll also find my "2024 Housing Inventory Shelter Analysis" attached as a PDF. To my knowledge, the City of Spokane still has only 947 emergency shelter beds. Everything else is up for debate. Let the public debate begin.
Yours for the Shalom of Our Community,
Maurice Smith