PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Clark County’s homeless population has grown despite local efforts to boost shelter space.

Council For the Homeless recently unveiled its latest Point in Time Count that shows the number of unhoused individuals that were residing in the county as of Jan. 30. The organization reported that 1,530 people were experiencing homelessness on that day — a 12% increase from the previous count on Jan. 25, 2024.

Council CEO Sesany Fennie-Jones attributed the increase to a lack of housing for low-income residents.

“There is an increased need for supportive services to help people stabilize and maintain their housing and the need for strategies that target the disproportionate rates of homelessness among people of color compared to white people,” Fennie-Jones said in a statement. “Collaboration and increasing resources are key to solving homelessness.”

Of the 1,530 individuals experiencing homelessness, about 58% of them were unsheltered. The remaining population was either found in emergency shelters or transitional housing.

About 29% of the people have been identified as “chronically homeless,” meaning they have been unhoused for at least a year or more than four times in three years, and have a disability.

Another 10% of the group was identified as domestic violence survivors. The overall count also included 149 families with children and 133 people above the age of 62 — a 21% increase from last year, the Council For the Homeless noted.

Clark County’s largest city, Vancouver, declared a homelessness emergency nearly two years ago. At the time, officials reported that the county had seen a 78% surge in people experiencing “chronic unsheltered homelessness” since 2022.

According to the City of Vancouver, the emergency declaration allows leaders to “bypass unnecessary procedural delays to swiftly address situations that may cause injury, death or property damage.”

Authorities have since closed a homeless encampment along the Mill Plain sound wall. Some of those residents were moved to one of the city’s four Safe Stay Communities, two of which opened after the emergency declaration.