HOMELESS

clear within seven days.

“ ey’re experiencing symptoms of PTSD, depression, or anxiety or all three, and those are the most prevalent forms of mental health issues that people experiencing homelessness have. I think it is a very logical reaction to becoming votes compared to Kirkmeyer with 22,724, and other candidates Lori Saine with 12,357 and Tyler Allcorn with 9,743. homeless,” she said.

Kirkmeyer lost to now Representative Yadira Caraveo by 1,632 votes, or 0.69%.

Kulmann, who is running for reelection as mayor in the 2023 ornton election, said she was hoping to bring nonpartisan politics to Congress.

“I thought being a mayor, I could bring non-partisan politics to Congress and I was wrong. Nobody wants that. ey wanted a show and that’s not who I am. So I enjoy being the mayor because it has not been partisan,” she said.

A root cause she sees is the cost of housing compared to wages. For the past 40 to 50 years, she said, wages haven’t kept up with housing costs.

“Even if we do have enough units at any one time for everybody, the simple fact is that housing costs have risen for many people by more than 50 to 100%, depending upon how much they were paying in

2012,” she said.

The good news ere have been many solutions for homelessness o ered.

It could be tiny homes as transitional housing, starter homes that are built in a more a ordable way or places where people can age in place.

“We need to recognize that not everybody needs a yard,” she said. “...we certainly have the ability to shift what housing needs to look like to have housing available for everybody.” at’s because the longer someone has been without housing, the more support they need because they’ve gotten used to living outdoors.

Skarbeck believes there is a possibility for everyone to be in a home. She said that while she may work with someone who initially says they don’t want a home, they eventually do.

“Helping support them as they make that huge transition. And you might think it would be an easy one, but we get used to what we get used to and going to a whole new lifestyle, it’s not necessarily an easy adjustment,” she said.

For the navigators to be able to do their job more and be more e ective, they need more people, she said.