Homelessness numbers in Fayette County disputed by local group
Catholic Action Center says actual total far exceeds state’s annual count
LEXINGTON, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW) — There is concern in Fayette County over how homelessness is being tracked.
According to the Kentucky Housing Corporation’s annual K-Count, there are exactly 100 more people experiencing homelessness in Fayette County this year compared to last, with 825 counted in 2024 and 925 in this years report.
But Ginny Ramsey with the Catholic Action Center believes the actual number is far higher.
“The city is now in the midst of looking at the new shelter knowing that we’re 350 to 500 beds short, and if you go by those numbers, just those, you would be looking at 1,100 to 1,500 people who have no place to sleep tonight,” Ramsey said.
The Catholic Action Center’s own survey, conducted annually on the streets, reports 3,034 people experiencing homelessness. That’s more than three times higher than the 925 individuals counted by KHC.
One key difference is that the K-Count only includes individuals who are unsheltered or in emergency shelters.
The timing of the counts are also different. The Catholic Action Center’s most recent survey was conducted on August 24, 2024, while the K-Count took place on January 29, 2025. Ramsey says colder months can impact the number of people visible on the streets.
“January we had more people in hotel rooms to keep them alive. The Catholic Action Center with the support of the community had 247, the city had 220, that’s not counting all the shelters,” Ramsey said.
Ramsey says it’s important to remember when the numbers in the findings mean.
“It’s very disturbing to me shall I say, that sometimes these numbers become more important than the people, everyone is saying ‘there’s no way it’s gone down we’re seeing it.’ And we know as having done this now we’re in our 27th year, we’ve never seen the numbers like they are.”
The Catholic Action Center plans to hold its next annual street survey on August 27. More information is available here.
