District 5 Councilwoman Ann Kitchen revealed the latest point in time count numbers to show how many homeless people are living in Austin.[/caption]

Rough estimates revealed March 4 suggest there are less homeless Austinites since last year.

Ending Community Homelessness Coalition, or ECHO, conducts a homeless count each year to learn how many people might be homeless on a given night in Austin. District 5 Councilwoman Ann Kitchen and District 4 Councilman Greg Casar volunteered for the homeless person count, which took place from 3 a.m.–8 a.m. Jan. 23. Kitchen and Casar were among more than 415 volunteers who participated in ECHO program. “Being able to participate in the count was really an eye-opener," Kitchen said. Austin's homeless population is estimated around 1,877 people, accoring to this year's ECHO count. From that total, 677 people, or 36 percent, do not stay in a shelter. The number of homeless counted throughout Austin has declined each of the past four years, said Kitchen, who also reminded the process is not an exact science. While volunteering, Kitchen said she met a man she referred to as "Roy" who had been homeless six months after losing his job and a fallout at home with his family. “Folks experiencing homelessness are just like the rest of us, and it doesn’t take much when people are living on the edge,” Kitchen said. “I think the other thing that I learned is there’s a lot of folks in the shadows that we don’t see.” The new Housing and Community Development council committee will seek to find more housing solutions for Austin's homeless population, Kitchen said.