As El Dorado County and the cities of Placerville and South Lake Tahoe come together to fight homelessness, a homeless count this year found more people living on the streets since 2017, raising the estimated number of homeless people in El Dorado County to 613.

The federally mandated point-in-time count, conducted every two years, was released last week by local officials and several homeless nonprofits.

Though a slight 1.8 percent jump in homelessness compared to two years ago when the survey found 602 homeless people living in the county, it was the highest ever recorded number of people living without permanent housing in El Dorado County.

The increase “wasn’t a surprise” considering increases in counties throughout the state, said Daniel Del Monte, El Dorado County Health and Human Services Agency deputy director.

Among the 613 estimated homeless people in El Dorado County are veterans, teens, seniors and families. About 42 percent suffer from a mental health disability and 30 percent suffer from drug or alcohol abuse, according to the data.

Eighty-five percent are white, nearly proportionate with the county’s overall population. African-Americans are disproportionately represented among the homeless, making up five percent of the homeless population but just one percent of the overall county population, according to census data.

The vast majority are from the county, with 80 percent residing in the county for at least one year before becoming homeless. Just under half have lived in the county their entire lives.

Eighteen percent of homeless individuals enumerated lived in the South Lake Tahoe basin while the remaining 82 percent lived on the county’s Western Slope.

El Dorado County’s slight bump in homelessness wasn’t quite as dramatic as other Gold Country counties. The Placer and Nevada County Continuum of Care saw a 4.3 percent jump in homelessness while the Tuolomne, Amador, Calaveras and Mariposa County CoC saw a 130 percent increase.

Overall, El Dorado County has about 32 homeless people for every 10,000 residents — just under the statewide rate of 33 per 10,000 residents.

About 78 percent of homeless people in El Dorado County were unsheltered, living in their vehicles, tents or under overpasses.

Homelessness rose by 123 percent from 2015 to 2017 according to California Continuum of Care data, jumping from 269 to 602 homeless persons.

The point-in-time count is a nationwide, federally mandated effort to tally the number of homeless Americans on a single night in January. It began in 2003 and happens every two years. The count is required to receive federal funding for homeless programs.

Some say the point in time count presents a skewed picture of a much larger homelessness problem. The count fails “to account for the transitory nature of homelessness and thus presents a misleading picture of the crisis” by only counting certain types of homeless folks and undercounting some communities, according to the National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty.

The new numbers reflect the dire situation California’s slow housing market is in even as the state spends millions of dollars trying to slow and end the growth of homelessness, Del Monte said.

“The State Department of Housing and Community Development reported that in 2018, only 80,000 new home permits were issued statewide,” Del Monte wrote in a statement. “Additionally, it was reported this week that housing permits are 20 percent lower in 2019 than what they were last year at this point. It’s important to note that the state suggests California needs 180,000 new housing permits issued annually to keep up with population growth. The last 10 years marks the lowest development decade in over 65 years.”

Local officials are getting started on a more comprehensive, full-fledged homelessness plan. Over the coming months, the county, city of Placerville and city of South Lake Tahoe will work to develop a multi-year strategic plan with the El Dorado Opportunity Knocks CoC to fight homelessness in the county.

“We have a lot of work to do,” District 5 Supervisor Sue Novasel said at a joint meeting between the two cities and the county on Sept. 6. “This is just the beginning but it’s promising that we were able to get all these jurisdictions together to discuss the issue.”

Officials anticipate that the Sept. 6 meeting will be the first of many, with public input repeatedly emphasized as a key component of the plan.

Through his experience with the homeless community John Gainsbrugh, a local homeless advocate, said he’s encouraged by the county and cities’ willingness to collaborate.

“For years, the city and county of Sacramento wouldn’t work together on this issue,” Gainsbrugh said. “In recent months, they’ve started collaborating and more things are getting done. This is a good start for El Dorado County.”