(Safiya Ravat, Houston Chronicle)
After losing his family, job and home five years ago, McKinney Tyler turned to drugs and alcohol to quell the pain, only spiraling him down further into a state of homelessness and clinical depression.
Frustration, confusion and instability plagued the 53-year-old as it does thousands of Houstonians with mental illness, but small steps are being taken to create stability in their lives. After three years on the street and a year in transitional housing, Tyler found his safe haven at a quiet, 15-unit, rent-subsidized apartment complex in north Houston designated for individuals with mental illness.
…While halfway houses, transitional housing and personal care homes are common services for individuals with mental illness, they’re only a temporary fix, said Dr. Steven Schnee, executive director of the Mental Health and Mental Retardation Authority of Harris County that developed the complex. The move to permanent housing allows individuals to feel more independent and stable, he said, two factors key to recovery. “If they don’t have a stable, safe place, they can’t sleep soundly, let alone start to plan a life,” Schnee said.
Applicants who meet the requirements – financial difficulty coupled with a certified mental illness like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or major depression – will pay rent based on 30 percent of their income. Residents also have to be fairly self-sufficient – whether it’s taking their medications on time or the ability to get to work – because the complex does not offer treatment or special services.
The Acres Homes Garden Apartments are the most recently built of six MHMRA permanent housing complexes for individuals with mental illness funded by U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development grants, bringing the total number of units to 100.
That’s just a “small dent” in what is needed, said Schnee, with almost 170,000 individuals diagnosed with mental illness across Harris County.,,,Individuals with mental illness make up roughly 40 percent of Houston’s homeless population, according to the coalition.
(Read the full story at the Houston Chronicle)
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