A recent Community Needs Assessment, undertaken once every four years by the Evanston Chapter of the United Way of the North Shore, found that affordable housing tops the list of community needs. Other leading needs include mental/behavioral health care, emergency/crisis intervention services, comprehensive youth services, hunger/poverty services, and general health services.

Survey recipients were asked to indicate priority issues from a list of 18 services that United Way typically supports. The survey respondents represent a wide scope of the Evanston community, including education, religious groups, social service organizations and agencies, as well as city government employees, and United Way Partner Agencies.

“The outcome of the Community Needs Assessment echoes what we’ve been hearing in the community and at site visits of our partner agencies for some time now,” said Karen Vroegh, the Evanston chapter board member who chaired the assessment team. “Affordable housing is an issue that still hasn’t been adequately addressed in our community.”

The United Way funds several Partner Agencies that provide affordable housing to vulnerable populations. One of them is Connections for the Homeless – an agency featured on the cover of the recent UWNS newsletter that was mailed to thousands of community members.

“We highlighted our funding to Connections because we want the entire North Shore to understand just how important our funding is to that agency. The fact is that they count on our support to keep their services and affordable housing available to Evanstonians in need. Our ability to support them depends on the support we receive from our donors,” said Lorelei Beaucaire, Assistant Director of the United Way of the North Shore.

Respondents to the Evanston Chapter needs assessment surveys were also asked to suggest new health and human service programs which could improve the work of organizations and agencies which enhance community life. Their suggestions as well as relevant summaries of the findings of three City of Evanston initiatives, the Evanston Project for the Local Assessment of Needs 2006-2011, The Evanston Youth Initiative, and Partnering Toward a Safer Evanston, are included in the needs assessment report.

Click here to download a copy of the full report.