Homelessness in the city of San Diego dropped by 13.5% in the last year, according to new data released today by the Regional Task Force on Homelessness. The numbers come from the most recent Point in Time Count, which was held in January. 

“The data released today by the Regional Task Force on Homelessness confirm that our comprehensive strategy to reduce homelessness and build more affordable housing is working, and I thank our service providers for the difficult work they do every day to change lives for the better,” Mayor Todd Gloria said. “But this is not the time to take the foot off the gas. When something is working, you don’t change course; you remain steadfast. My Administration will continue to do everything we can to get people off the streets, into care, and on a path to stable housing.” 

Since Day 1 of his administration, Mayor Gloria has been committed to building up a comprehensive strategy to reduce homelessness – including expanded and diversified shelter options, championing statewide reforms to expand access to treatment for mental illness and addiction through his advocacy for CARE Court and conservatorship reform, family reunification, homelessness prevention programs, and a multifaceted effort to build more affordable housing.  

“San Diego is taking decisive action to reduce street homelessness, and we are delivering results,” said Councilmember Stephen Whitburn, who represents the city’s urban center and has been a leader in reducing homelessness. “Other cities are seeing this progress and following our lead. This report shows we have work to do, but we have turned the tide. Together, let’s stay the course and finish the job.” 

Since the wind-down of the pandemic-era emergency shelter at the San Diego Convention Center in March 2021, Mayor Gloria has doubled the number of options people have to get off the streets and into care.  

While in the past, shelters were mostly one-size-fits-all, Mayor Gloria has opened shelters tailored to vulnerable populations including women, families, LGBTQ youth, seniors, and those struggling with behavioral health issues. 

These shelters are working. This year’s data show within the City of San Diego, unsheltered veteran homelessness declined 22%, and unsheltered youth homelessness declined 23%. Most notably, families experiencing unsheltered homelessness declined 66%.  

In 2023, Mayor Gloria launched the innovative Safe Sleeping Program, which now serves more than 700 people, the vast majority of whom had never previously accessed homelessness services. The program expanded by over 200 spaces in 2024 to provide more people experiencing homelessness a safe place to stay and access to basic needs and critical resources.  

With the upcoming opening of the H Barracks site, Mayor Gloria has nearly doubled the capacity of the City’s highly successful Safe Parking Program for people to stay overnight safely and legally in their vehicles while accessing supportive services. The program’s capacity now includes 396 spaces for a mix of standard-sized and oversized vehicles and features 19 trailers for families at one of the sites. 

As for housing, Mayor Gloria’s policy reforms have resulted in a dramatic increase in new home permits. For roughly 20 years prior to 2023, the City permitted about 4,300 new homes annually. In 2023, the City permitted nearly 9,700 new homes. In 2024, despite a challenging economy, the City permitted approximately 8,500 new homes. With this permitting success, the city now has 609 transitional homes and 8,758 permanent supportive homes ready to be leased. 

The Mayor’s strategy also includes the Unsafe Camping Ordinance, which has dramatically reduced the prevalence of unsafe and unsanitary tent encampments throughout the city as unhoused residents were encouraged to seek shelter options. 

According to the new data, overall homelessness – including people living in the City’s shelters or enrolled in transitional housing programs – dropped from 6,783 to 5,866. The number of residents living unsheltered in San Diego dropped from 3,489 to 3,354, a 3.9% decrease. However, it should be noted, the “unsheltered” number includes 844 people participating in the Safe Sleeping and Safe Parking programs. Were the people in these programs counted as sheltered, the overall decrease in unsheltered homelessness in the city would have been 8.1%. 

Mayor Gloria continues to advocate for the U.S. Department of Housing and Development to count those participating in these supportive programs as “sheltered.” 

Overall, Mayor Gloria’s proposed budget proposes funding 2,800 sheltering and safe parking options for individuals experiencing homelessness (1,634 traditional shelter beds, 767 Safe Sleeping tents, 396 Safe Parking spaces and 19 camper trailers for families experiencing homelessness). The City’s Coordinated Outreach Program includes more than 50 contracted-outreach workers to provide street-based case management across the city. 

The proposed budget also includes $8.8 million for prevention services, including $5.8 million for the Housing Instability Prevention Program and $3 million for the Eviction Prevention Program.