"The cost of living has gone up. The cost of housing has gone up," Jenks said. "The available housing and incomes that folks can afford has decreased over time."
IFC provides people in Orange County with shelter and housing programs, but she's working to find better solutions to combat homelessness.
"The solution to homelessness is housing, and we just don't have the housing that we need," Jenks said.
In 2024, more than 1,000 people experienced homelessness in Orange County, according to data provided by the Orange County Housing Department.
Although there are some places where people could go for things such as shelter or a meal, Jenks said there is a growing need for specific services.
"What we're really missing are laundry facilities, additional shower facilities, some storage," Jenks said. "People really need someplace to keep their belongings so they can go to job interviews, so they can look for housing, and not have to carry all of their belongings around."
On Tuesday, the Orange County Commissioners approved a 10-year lease for the building that's owned by UNC-Chapel Hill on Homestead Road.
The building is used to store campus files and for UNC Police operations, according to county staff. ABC11 reached out to UNC to find out what would happen to those operations if the building were turned into a day center.
"The idea is to start with our cold-weather shelter and moving that to the day center on an ongoing basis," Orange County housing director Blake Rosser said.
Although the plans are in the early stages, according to Rosser, some county leaders hope the day center could provide services such as showers and laundry.
"We would scale up ... to be able to offer connection with services, dental clinics, mental health services, employment services, job training," Rosser said. "It's something that we've seen work in other communities ... assist folks to move from homelessness into housing, which is the ultimate goal."
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