The Cattleman’s Square Homeless Response Action Plan is a focused effort to improve how our community supports individuals experiencing unsheltered homelessness in and around Cattleman’s Square.

Led by 8th and Home in partnership with the San Antonio Housing Trust (SAHT) this initiative brings together service providers, public partners, businesses, and people with lived experience. The shared goal is to better understand current conditions, strengthen coordination, and develop clear, practical steps that improve outcomes for people without stable housing.

The planning process began in November 2025 and will conclude with a finalized Action Plan in June 2026.

What This Plan Is Meant to Do

This effort is designed to:

• Improve coordination among organizations serving the area
• Strengthen pathways to housing and supportive services
• Address immediate needs while identifying longer-term solutions

The result will be a clear set of action steps that partners can realistically implement.

What Will Be Delivered by June 2026

• A summary of what we heard through surveys, interviews, focus groups, and listening sessions
• Recommendations from a 44-member Working Group
• A Homeless Response Action Plan outlining immediate, medium-, and long-term strategies
• Community presentations to share findings and next steps

This work is grounded in a few core beliefs:

• Housing ends homelessness. When people are matched with the right housing and support, most remain stably housed.
• Everyone deserves a safe place to call home. Safety and dignity are foundational.
• People closest to the issue are closest to the solution. Individuals with lived experience must help shape the response.

This plan is informed by both data and direct community input.

We have reviewed:

• Point-in-Time Count data
• Program data from agencies operating in Cattleman’s Square

We are also conducted:

• Homeless Response System Partner Survey
  • 26 individuals submitted survey responses, representing frontline staff, program managers, agency leadership, city/county staff, and other partners working in and around Cattleman’s Square.
• Focus groups and one-on-one interviews with people experiencing homelessness
  • ~31 individuals (21 structured interviews + 2 focus groups with 10 participants)
• Listening sessions with frontline staff and agency leadership
  • 7 frontline staff and multiple semi-structured interviews + field observation

Engagement is taking place February through March and includes individuals experiencing homelessness, service providers, public agencies, businesses, and neighbors.

The effort includes a 44-member Working Group made up of members of the SAHT Public Facility Corporation Board and Close to Home’s Homeless Strategic Advisory Board, along with ongoing input from community and public partners, including the City of San Antonio and Bexar County.

In February, 29 Working Group members met in person to achieve the following:

• Collective understanding of data collected to date and primary findings
• Establishment of Shared Vision for Cattleman’s Square
• Identify Working Group priorities

Through a review of preliminary data findings, relevant promising practices from similar communities, and identification of community strengths to leverage, the Working Group members then workshopped opportunities.

The Working Group will meet in mid-March and review the Homeless Response Action Plan recommendations and implementation plan draft in April. The final draft will be circulated to the community through various presentations, with a final presentation to the San Antonio Housing Trust board in early summer