City of Austin

Today, Austin Homeless Strategies and Operations revealed its inaugural Strategic Plan during the Austin City Council Work Session briefing, marking a significant step forward in the City’s coordinated effort to address homelessness and expand access to stable housing, as outlined in a memorandum presenting the 2025-2027 Strategic Plan, and a roadmap for the next phase of impact.
 
Grounded in a clear and ambitious vision that everyone has access to stable housing and the support they need to thrive, the strategic plan establishes a roadmap for systemwide leadership, targeted investments, and measurable outcomes. The plan reflects eight months of listening, analysis, and collaboration with residents, service providers, public agencies, and community partners.
 
Vision
Everyone has access to stable housing and the support they need to thrive.
 
Mission
We serve as the citywide strategic leader to address homelessness in Austin through effective policies, investments, and partnerships.
 
The Austin Homeless Strategies and Operations Strategic Plan identifies five focus areas that represent critical levers for high-impact change and will guide the City’s work while remaining grounded in shared purpose and core values.
 
The five focus areas include:
 

• System Leadership: Serving as a trusted system leader, working collaboratively to ensure an efficient, accessible, and effective homelessness response.
   
• Impactful Community Investments: Making investments that resolve individual experiences of homelessness and drive meaningful system change.
   
• Crisis Response System Management: Ensuring people experiencing homelessness have easy access to basic needs, outreach, crisis shelter, and services that support survival and pathways to stable housing.
   
• Communications: Strengthening community trust, aligning efforts, and driving systemwide impact through public dialogue and intentional communication with stakeholders.
   
• Invest in Our People: Fostering a culture of continuous learning and a collaborative, supportive workplace that centers on growth, development, and staff well-being.

 
 “This inaugural strategic plan reflects both urgency and intention,” said David Gray, Director of Austin Homeless Strategies and Operations. “It is the product of deep collaboration with our dedicated staff and community partners who brought their lived experience, expertise, and heart to this work. By sharing this plan publicly and engaging City Council, we are reaffirming our commitment to transparency, accountability, and measurable results—and, more importantly, to a future where our response to homelessness is more coordinated, compassionate, and effective for the people we serve.”
 
The plan is guided by Austin Homeless Strategies and Operations' core values of integrity, results-oriented leadership, and collaboration. It emphasizes transparency, data informed decision making, and person-centered approaches to improve outcomes across the homelessness response system.
 
With success clearly defined, the next phase focuses on implementation. The strategic plan outlines goals and strategies that will guide action toward the City’s vision, with additional work underway to address system gaps in case management and behavioral health services. The City remains committed to refining the roadmap over time through community input and continuous learning.
 
The full Austin Homeless Strategies and Operations Strategic Plan is available at www.austintexas.gov/homelessness.