Homelessness & shelter
Shelter, transitional housing and basic services for people experiencing homelessness.
Residents consistently ask for more shelter beds, day centers with hygiene and food, and housing with support for youth and people with addiction.
Theme grouped and summary written with AI from this theme's resident ideas.
117 ideas across three cycles
| Cycle | Ideas | Share of all ideas | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024–25 | 48 | 3.9% | 14 of 20 |
| 2025–26 | 36 | 3.0% | 15 of 20 |
| 2026–27 | 33 | 2.5% | 17 of 20 |
Needs that keep coming back
More shelters and shelter beds
Residents in every cycle ask for more places to sleep indoors, including overnight, winter and neighborhood-based shelters.
Raised in 2024–25, 2025–26, 2026–27
Day centers and hygiene services
Residents ask for walk-in spaces with showers, restrooms, laundry, health services and links to other help, including in Allston/Brighton and near Mass and Cass.
Raised in 2024–25, 2025–26, 2026–27
Food and meals
Residents repeatedly ask for meals, food banks or food programs for people experiencing homelessness, alone or alongside shelter.
Raised in 2024–25, 2025–26, 2026–27
Housing with addiction support
Residents ask for housing, transitional housing or rehab-linked shelter for people who are homeless and struggling with addiction.
Raised in 2024–25, 2025–26
Housing for homeless youth
Residents ask for supportive or transitional housing and shelter beds for youth and young adults who are homeless or aging out of care.
Raised in 2024–25, 2026–27
2024–25
Youth and family housing dominated, often paired with calls to spend the full $5 million, alongside ideas for converting vacant buildings and building tiny homes.
2025–26
Residents emphasized overnight shelters with food and hygiene supplies, and several raised safety concerns about street homelessness and addiction, with some proposing day centers instead of enforcement.
2026–27
Ideas were fewer and shorter, centered on more shelter beds, meals, outreach and service centers, with some specific asks for young adult beds and shelter grants.
New in 2026–27
New or more specific asks include funding existing shelters' daily needs, grants for shelter beds and renovations, heating and cooling centers, mobile outreach workers, a permanent soup kitchen in East Boston and bank accounts for people who are homeless.
Funding so far
The funded Bridging the Gap housing assistance pool addresses housing stability, but no winning project yet covers recurring asks for more shelter beds, day centers with hygiene services, meals, addiction-linked housing or youth-specific housing.
Projects are linked to themes by matching each project's description to the themes; this is not an official City classification.
Bridging the Gap: Assistance for Housing Stability
2025–26 · $200,000
This proposal establishes a flexible funding pool to help Boston residents at risk of or experiencing homelessness to secure or maintain housing.
Departments that often lead this work
- Mayor's Office of Housing
- Boston Public Health Commission
Suggested with AI; not an official assignment of responsibility.
Ideas in Homelessness & shelter
117 ideas
2024–25: 48 · 2025–26: 36 · 2026–27: 33
- Housing support for homeless young people and familiesResident asks for resources and housing for young people and families facing homelessness or staying with friends, and suggests using the full $5 million for it.2024–25City-wide
- Supportive housing for homeless youth and young adultsResident asks for a supportive housing initiative for homeless youth and young adults to address violence, addiction and depression and improve educational opportunity.2024–25City-wide
- Day centers for unhoused residentsResident asks for day centers offering laundry, internet, snacks, hygiene products, health and wellness services, employment help and transitional housing links for people without homes.2024–25City-wide
- Homeless outreach team for Allston Village and BostonResident asks for a homeless outreach team to intervene with unhoused individuals, helping residents, businesses and the individuals affected.2024–25Allston
- Housing support for homeless youth and familiesResident asks for housing support for youth and families facing homelessness and for spending the full $5 million on participatory budgeting.2024–25City-wide
- Housing for homeless BPS students and familiesResident asks to use funds to house BPS students and families experiencing homelessness, spend all $5 million on participatory budgeting, and raise it to 1% of the budget.2024–25City-wide
- Grants for housing and resources for unhoused youthResident asks for grants to provide resources and housing for youth who do not have housing.2024–25City-wide
- More shelters for people experiencing homelessnessProvide more shelters so homeless people can get off the streets and receive help, especially during winter, storms and heat.2024–25Downtown
- More homeless shelters and a rehab centerBuild more shelters for people experiencing homelessness and a rehabilitation center for people with addiction.2024–25City-wide
- Fund youth housing programs and spend full PB budgetPrioritize participatory budgeting funds for youth housing programs, and spend the full $5 million rather than $2 million, since housing instability especially affects young Bostonians.2024–25City-wide
- Build homeless shelters across the cityBuild homeless shelters throughout the city to address the growing homeless population.2024–25City-wide
- Homeless services site in the neighborhoodOpen a homeless shelter or at least a day program in this area, since the nearest shelters are over four miles away.2024–25Allston
- Housing and support for youth facing homelessnessFund housing and support services for youth experiencing homelessness or instability, giving marginalized young people safe and stable places to live.2024–25City-wide
- Housing support for unhoused youth and young adultsResident asks for housing resources, such as extendable one-year vouchers, for unhoused or unstably housed youth, guided by youth with that experience, to prevent exploitation and criminalization.2024–25City-wide
- Step-up housing program for homeless youthResident proposes step-up housing for youth with five-year plans and skill-building before aging out, to break the cycle of chronic homelessness, which disproportionately affects BIPOC youth.2024–25City-wide
- Housing support and programs for youthResident asks for housing support and programs for youth.2024–25City-wide
- Housing stability support for youth and familiesResident asks for housing resources for youth and families so no young person lives on the street or couch-surfs without stable housing.2024–25City-wide