wausau unhoused population

Community outreach specialist: Twenty unhoused people in Wausau now housed

unhoused wausau
A breakdown of the unhoused population in Wausau in February presented by Community Outreach Specialist Tracy Rieger to the city’s Public Health and Safety Committee

Twenty formerly unhoused people have now found homes and are keeping them, according to the city’s Community Outreach Specialist. 

Tracy Rieger, who was hired late last year to fill the new Community Outreach Specialist role, says she found homes for three people last month. That brings the total to twenty since she started.

Rieger says that the shelter came about because of her work with the various community partners. Rieger says she works with property managers to help get folks into places to live. Many of the unhoused have things in their past that lead landlords to not rent to them; but the managers Rieger partners with are more receptive to those individuals because they know Rieger is working with them. 

Rieger says it takes a lot of case management to keep them housed – she’s been working with North Central Health Care, the ADRC and Inclusa to help get them case management so she can focus on helping more people get into housing. 

In February, Wausau had 191 unhoused individuals. That included 84 coming through Catholic Charities and 50 coming through the Salvation Army.