Craig announces partnership between city and National Alliance to End Homelessness

MANCHESTER, NH – Manchester Mayor Joyce Craig on Tuesday announced that the city is entering a partnership with the National Alliance to End Homelessness.

After talking with local officials in Asheville, NC, Craig and local charitable organizations reached out to the National Alliance to End Homelessness to seek their assistance in Manchester.

Describing itself as a non-partisan organization committed to preventing and ending homelessness in the United States, Craig and Manchester Director of Homeless Initiatives Adrienne Beloin said that direct support from the National Alliance will help strengthen collaboration and best practices between the Manchester Continuum of Care and other groups addressing the issue of homelessness in the city.

While Craig noted that $29 million in federal funding has already been put toward initiatives across the city to address homelessness, such as the continued operation the Beech Street shelter and the expected engagement center, the support from the National Alliance to End Homelessness could also help guide the city toward grant funding that would re-house individuals that recently lost their homes.

Craig hoped that the partnership now formed at the city level could be extended to the state level, expanding upon earlier requests from the state’s mayors for more state-level action on the issue of homelessness.

“We really need to start making significant progress at the state level, addressing shelters, increasing supportive housing and rapid rehousing opportunities,” she said. “In making sure we’re providing those services to individuals who need them the most, we can stabilize them into places where they are productive and housed.”

Craig, a Democrat, has announced her campaign for the governor’s office in 2024.