The 2026 Point-in-Time Homeless Count took place January 21 from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. and January 22 from 6 a.m. to 8 a.m., with a supplementary youth count Thursday afternoon.
Volunteer recruitment exceeded goals ahead of schedule, according to Christina Kasali, the city’s Homeless Count Coordinator.
“The community response has been incredibly encouraging,” Kasali said. “We surpassed our volunteer recruitment goals ahead of schedule, demonstrating that Pasadena residents view homelessness as a critical problem that is deserving of time and attention.”
Teams of four to six volunteers covered 28 geographic zones spanning the city’s entire geography, using a mobile GIS-enabled app developed by the city’s Department of Information Technology to record surveys. Volunteers also counted at all 10 city branch libraries and at locations where people receive services.
Pasadena was the first city in California, and one of the first three in the nation, to conduct a dedicated homeless count in 1992. The city has conducted both sheltered and unsheltered counts every year since, except 2021 when the unsheltered count was canceled due to the pandemic.
The Pasadena Police Department surveyed parks, freeway embankments, and other hard-to-access locations. The Pasadena Public Health Department, partnering with Huntington Hospital, administered flu, COVID, and hepatitis A vaccines and distributed Narcan overdose reversal kits during the count.
Volunteers distributed cold weather kits containing warm clothing items, snacks, and resource flyers to people they encountered.
The count provides a one-night snapshot of the homeless population, data that informs planning and funding for homeless services. Federal, state, and county funders use the figures to allocate homeless services grants.
Results will be available by June 2026.
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