Intown Announces New Neighborhood Partnerships

ATLANTA - January 19, 2022 - INTOWN COLLABORATIVE MINISTRIES announces it is launching new partnerships this month with both MIDTOWN ALLIANCE and THE CHURCH OF THE COMMON GROUND to combat homelessness in Midtown and Downtown Atlanta.

Both new partnerships will embed an Intown Homeless Outreach Case Manager within a geographic neighborhood. The Midtown Alliance partnership will involve an Intown Case Manager working alongside the MIDTOWN BLUE team in the Midtown Improvement District. The Common Ground partnership will involve an Intown Case Manager working with parishioners of the Church of The Common Ground in Downtown Atlanta.

“Midtown Alliance is known for creating partnerships that address quality of life issues impacting the Midtown Improvement District, including homeless outreach,” says Midtown Alliance Director of Public Safety Marcus Neville. “Our expanded effort with Intown Collaborative Ministries removes barriers and brings more resources to help people experiencing homelessness who spend time here. This new investment in a dedicated case manager working on the ground daily with our Midtown Blue personnel carries the immediate potential to improve the lives of people in need and strengthen the Midtown community.”

These partnerships are a new model for Atlanta – bringing a case manager into a particular community for an extended period of time. In the first year of these partnerships, Intown anticipates each of these case managers will: engage with at least 40 individuals, enroll at least 25 clients, and navigate at least 15 clients to “document ready”.

Georgia State Senator and Vicar of Church of the Common Ground, Reverend Kim Jackson, shares, “We are thrilled to begin this new partnership with Intown! For over a decade, Church of the Common Ground has worked to meet the spiritual needs of people who live on the streets of Atlanta. This partnership enables us to continue that mission, while also providing our parishioners with additional services that they so desperately need.”

About Intown Collaborative Ministries

Intown Collaborative Ministries has been a leader in ending homelessness in Atlanta since 2016. The team of 14 Case Managers operates around the city in high priority areas, working to connect clients with resources that lead to permanent housing solutions.  Intown’s model of “Engage, Enroll, Navigate, House” is now considered best practice by the City of Atlanta’s Homeless Services providers and continuum of care. Over the past five years, Intown has helped to navigate over 560 clients from experiences of homelessness into permanent housing solutions.

“In the course of our work, we have seen that homelessness is often neighborhood-centric. Many individuals don’t leave the area where they sleep to seek services elsewhere. Part of what makes the Intown team successful is that we go to where folks are sleeping, rather than asking them to come to our office to access services,” says Brad Schweers, Executive Director of Intown Collaborative Ministries.

About Midtown Alliance

Midtown Alliance is a non-profit membership organization and a coalition of leading business and community leaders – united in our commitment to Midtown as a premier destination for commerce, culture, education and living. Guided by a visionary master plan – Blueprint Midtown – and in partnership with the Midtown Improvement District, our mission is to improve and sustain the quality of life for those who live, work and play here. Midtown Alliance accomplishes this goal through a comprehensive approach to planning and development that includes initiatives to enhance public safety, improve the physical environment, and strengthen the urban amenities which give the area its unique character.

About Church of the Common Ground

The Church of the Common Ground is a worshiping community of the Episcopal Diocese of Atlanta. We are a “church without walls” on the streets of Atlanta, providing support for the pastoral and spiritual needs of women, men and youth who live on the margins of our city. We welcome people of all faith backgrounds, and those who seek a new connection to faith. Common Ground aims to be a faithful, consistent presence and a witness to Christ’s love for all people. We work to share the good news with the un-housed, the urban poor and other underserved people that they are God’s beloved. We offer comfort and relationship through pastoral, social and health care connections and referrals.