According to a new report published by Santa Clara County, the number of unhoused residents in Palo Alto has more than doubled since 2023, rising from 187 to 399. This 113% increase is based on data collected in January of this year. Although the report indicates that other cities still have homeless populations larger than Palo Alto’s, no other city in the report experienced growth of the same magnitude.
Palo Alto’s unique increase in unhoused residents is closely aligned with recent estimates from the city, which projected that the number of vehicle dwellers had doubled since 2023. The report notes that the increase in RV residents is “more prevalent in the northern part of Santa Clara County, with the biggest increases in Mountain View, Santa Clara, and Palo Alto.” Currently, according to the report, 76% of Palo Alto’s unhoused residents live in RV’s.
Palo Alto is the only city in the report that didn’t put more unhoused individuals in shelters. The report shows that only 19 unhoused individuals in Palo Alto live in shelters, the same number as the previous 2023 report. Meanwhile, Mountain View saw its population of individuals in shelters increase from 562 to 879 between the two reports.
The report increases city pressure to address recent growth in homelessness.