Waikiki homeless outreach program to begin

The Institute for Human Services, with support from the Hawaii Lodging & Tourism Association, is starting a full-time outreach program in Waikiki in the hopes that it will bring stability to the district’s homeless population and end the litany of complaints that threatens the health of the state’s key visitor industry.

The association is donating $100,000 to kick off the program, which gets underway Monday and will involve IHS’ outreach staff meeting daily with Waikiki’s homeless people. IHS staff will assist them in getting into shelters or homes, finding employment, receiving medical care and reconnecting with loved ones.

The effort will work in tandem with the implementation of IHS’ $2 million city Housing First contract, which on Monday will begin offering housing and services to 115 chronically homeless households in Waikiki, downtown Hono­lulu and Leeward Oahu.

IHS Executive Director Connie Mitchell said the outreach program’s goal is to serve 300 homeless people the first year. Of that total, IHS hopes to place 140 individuals into IHS shelters or homes, and help another 120 return to their homes outside of Hawaii.

Mayor Kirk Caldwell said IHS’ latest outreach and the Housing First program aim to augment city legislative efforts to reduce the negative effects tied to homelessness in the state’s top tourism district.

"With IHS stepping up and the contributions from the visitor industry, I think that we’ll see some real change now. Getting 140 people off the streets would be a major game-changer for Waikiki," said Caldwell, who has been working for more than a year with visitor industry stakeholders to find solutions to the district’s growing homeless problems.

Caldwell said the recent reopening of a Waikiki restroom that’s open around the clock daily along with the additional services from IHS should prompt a reduction in enforcement measures accompanying the city’s stored property ordinance, sit-lie law, and ban on public urination and defecation.

George Szigeti, HLTA president and CEO, said the association has fielded many complaints from visitors and Waikiki workers about street people defecating and urinating in Waikiki, stealing, aggressively panhandling, and blocking access to parks and beaches. He’s optimistic that having a dedicated IHS outreach team will bring improvements to the area.

"Homeless people will get the help they need and those who live, work and visit our Waikiki community will appreciate how this problem can be effectively addressed," Szigeti said, adding that HLTA has pledged another $100,000 to IHS in 2015 and will donate used furniture, bedding and light fixtures to Housing First recipients.

Kimo Carvalho, IHS development and community relations manager, said HLTA’s kickoff funds allow outreach to begin. The nonprofit is soliciting more support for a coordinated Waikiki service program, which will need about $500,000 in private sector funds annually. IHS’ annual budget to operate the Waikiki outreach program is $1.3 million, of which $824,000 will be funded through IHS’ existing budget.

"I’m absolutely sure that this is something that will be supported by the visitor industry," said Jerry Gibson, area vice president of Hilton Hawaii.

"We’ll be outreaching to different businesses in the city to assist with this effort, which will help put people back on track with their lives while at the same time making Waikiki more accessible for all people to enjoy," Gibson said.

Carvalho said he hopes momentum is strong enough for IHS to raise another $400,000 by January so it can open a drop-in center in the Waikiki Community Center. IHS also wants to launch a 25-passenger shuttle to help Waikiki’s homeless population to check out IHS’ shelters in Iwilei.

"Our hope is that once people get introduced to our services that they’ll want to stay," Mitchell said.

That was the case with Robert Binnie, 57, whose decision to walk more than 5 miles to get a hot meal at IHS eventually helped him rebound from more than a year of chronic alcoholism and homelessness in Waikiki. Those first steps led to sobriety, a 16-month stay at the shelter, an apartment of his own and enrollment in Kapiolani Community College, where he’s studying to become either a math teacher or radiologist.

"It took me a while to trust (IHS), but when I did it opened me up to a whole new world," he said.