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Morning, gang.
This week we’re bringing you two stories—one on the future of the Greensboro City Council and the other on one of the most pressing issues it will face in the new year.
Late last week the council voted 8-1 to appoint Jamilla Pinder, director of community engagement and impact for the Cone Health Foundation, to fill the unexpired term of the late Yvonne Johnson. Not everyone was thrilled with the choice, which came after a review of more than 40 candidates. But council members said they believe Pinder’s professional experience and community work will enable her to hit the ground running in the at-large seat.
Among the issues the council will need to address with its new member is a surge in homelessness that has brought the number of unhoused people in Guilford County back to pre-pandemic levels. A freeze on foreclosures and evictions helped drive that number down during and immediately after the COVID-19 crisis. But with those things falling by the wayside and emergency winter shelter options about to end, the numbers are climbing.
Let’s get into it.
– Joe Killian
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Greensboro City Council Taps Pinder for At-Large Seat
In a special meeting late last week, the Greensboro City Council voted 8-1 to have Jamilla Pinder fill the unexpired term of the late Yvonne Johnson.
Pinder is the director for community engagement and impact for Cone Health Foundation and has been heavily involved in the community in various roles. Not everyone was happy with the choice—including Guilford County Commissioners Chair Melvin “Skip” Alston.
Read the full story here.
Read this newsletter online or contact The Thread team with tips and feedback at greensboro@theassemblync.com.
Guilford Unhoused Population Back to Pre-Pandemic Levels
After falling gradually from 2016-2020—and more drastically from 2020-2022—the number of adults and children dealing with homelessness is rising again.
Last week, over 100 volunteers fanned out across Guilford County to survey exactly how many residents are without homes. The work was for the county’s annual Point-In-Time (PIT) count, a federally-required assessment of an area’s unhoused population at a specific time of the year.
The survey comes as the county, and the state more broadly, continues to deal with a rise in homelessness. The numbers have increased since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, when foreclosures and evictions were paused.
As the problem persists, local advocates are calling for a shift in how the needs of unhoused communities are discussed. A more collaborative effort is needed between groups serving unhoused people, business leaders, city officials, and those experiencing housing issues firsthand, they say.
“We have quite a few resources that haven’t been coordinated. The providers haven’t been in the room together talking as much as they maybe should,” Tim Rice, a former CEO of Cone Health and chair of the recently announced Unhoused Working Group, said in a recent interview with The Thread. “If we can help groups do that, that’s a step in the right direction.”
The Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro convened the Unhoused Working Group last year. It aims to gather stakeholders from around the city—including groups like the Interactive Resource Center, Salvation Army, and Greensboro Urban Ministry, as well as private citizens and city leaders to address short and long-term issues facing unhoused people.
“Our problem is not so big that we can’t get our arms around it,” said the foundation’s Chief Impact Officer Brandon Zeigler. “It’s just figuring out the right strategy to piece things all together so they work.”
The goal, he says, is to create “a strategy that gets us from moving from crisis to crisis to something more strategic,” to get people into permanent housing.
Greensboro faces a number of issues when it comes to fighting homelessness, ranging from an ongoing housing shortage to a lack of easy access to city services. In the past few weeks, advocate efforts have focused on bracing for a shortage of shelter space in the spring due to the pending closure of local cold weather shelters, and the end of the seasonal pallet homes program, which offers temporary housing during colder months.
Additionally, Guilford County is struggling with a persistent rise in the number of unhoused people. The 2024 PIT count found 665 people experiencing homelessness. That was up from 452 people in 2023. The 2024 numbers are similar to what the county recorded ten years ago, a sign that despite increased attention, actual change has proved elusive.
Advocates say improving how services are offered and coordinated within the county could help address the crisis. Last Wednesday, hours before the point-in-time count was set to begin, the Guilford County Homelessness Task Force received a lengthy presentation on the findings of a study into how Greensboro handles homelessness.
The study was conducted by the Corporation for Supportive Housing, a nonprofit advocating for affordable housing and improved community services across the country. The analysis found that while Greensboro and Guilford County have invested in medical support and other services for the unhoused, navigating the vast network of local providers can be confusing and stressful for someone already in crisis.
The city must also address a range of other needs the group said, like substandard housing conditions and a dire lack of affordable housing, if it hopes to address the problem permanently.
It’s a process that takes time. But more importantly, county officials say, it requires a deeper commitment to improving conditions and making resources more available for those who need them.
While the task force did not vote on specific actions at the meeting, Guilford County Board of Commissioners Chair Melvin “Skip” Alston said that it’s time for action.
“If we want to really be serious about addressing this homelessness problem, we can’t just talk about it,” Alston said as the Wednesday meeting came to a close. “We got to be about it.”
— P.R. Lockhart
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Around the Region
“The Most Basic Right of Citizenship”: Jefferson Griffin is challenging tens of thousands of ballots in a seemingly never-ending quest to overturn his failed bid for a seat on the North Carolina Supreme Court. Among those having their votes challenged is award-winning journalist and author Phoebe Zerwick, who has voted without incident in every election since 1987. She tells her story in the News & Record and Winston-Salem Journal.
A Fond Farewell: Former News & Record publisher Robin Saul and his wife Connie were killed in a car crash in Georgia late last month. N&R veteran Nancy McLaughlin offers a remembrance of Saul and his impact on the paper and community.
Around the State
Mark Robinson Drops Lawsuit Against CNN, Says He’s Exiting Politics
In December, the combative former lieutenant governor asked a federal judge to rewrite libel laws. On Friday, he conceded that “continuing to pursue retribution from CNN is a futile effort.”
Why Most Counties Aren’t Doing All Required Restaurant Inspections
As counties struggle to hire and retain health inspectors, lawmakers, regulators, and scientists look to ease caseloads and develop new talent.
These Moms Never Stopped Fighting For Their Sons
Eloise Vaughn and Patsy Clarke, who lost sons to AIDS and joined forces against Jesse Helms, both died recently.
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