Ask City Hall
Have you ever wanted to ask your city government a question, but didn't know quite how?
If you're a citizen of Hampton and would like to ask your elected and appointed officials a question about city government policies or services, here's a quick, efficient way to do it:
Just click HERE and fill out and submit the form
We'll work hard to get you an answer.
Questions from and responses to citizens:
Q: Can the city provide more help for our homeless population?
From Elizabeth Evans:
Due to the exteme weather conditions this winter and the lack of homeless shelters other than the Eucumenical which are dependent on church charity, could the City set up a temporary shelter for homeless? This could be a life saver this winter.
Ms. Evans,
As with all municipalities, we are struggling with an economy which has led to more people being in need of help while simultaneously forcing us to tighten our budget.
Our social and ecumenical partners in the community already have profound experience in serving this fragile segment of our population, having done so with great humanity for many years.
We believe that we can best serve our homeless population by supporting, and as our budget and funding opportunities improve, helping expand the services provided to the homeless by these highly experienced partners.
As it relates to sheltering, thus far this winter, the Division of Social Services and Hampton Ecumenical Lodgings and Provisions have worked together on several occasions. On severely cold and/or snowy days, the community churches extended their hours of operation to provide sheltering beyond the normal day and staff from both the HELP organization and the Division of Social Services shared the responsibility of addressing the needs of those being sheltered.
City officials have taken a proactive role to ensure that we are responsive and that we have a plan to address weather events or other emergency situations that require sheltering for our citizens. A committee of Hampton Division of Social Services case managers meets regularly to creatively plan for and address the increase in the number of individuals and families who need housing assistance. Additionally we actively participate in the Virginia Peninsula Regional Plan to End Homelessness with a focus on prevention, permanent housing, coordinated services, education and public awareness.
We continue to seek innovative solutions to address homelessness. But rest assured that even now, the city puts tremendous effort and resources into helping the less fortunate in our community. Our contributions manifest in the amazing work of our community partners.
Thank you.
Wanda Rogers
Director, Social Services
