An Interconnected Community: Art, City Building and Impactful Approaches to Homelessness

By Tammy Hughes, Social Impact Director, Atlanta Downtown Improvement District (ADID)

Tell us about yourself and your role downtown.

As the Atlanta Downtown Social Impact Director, my overall goal is to champion inclusive city building for everyone. I do that by taking an active role in social issues affecting property owners and stakeholders within the Downtown business community and vulnerable people in need as partners to positively impact challenges related to equity, diversity, and inclusion in all spaces.

I focus on leading and convening stakeholders to understand and promote solution-focused strategies that address key quality of life issues – such as homelessness, including helping to launch innovative initiatives and investing in programs with proven results. 

What is the A.S.I.S.T program?

In September 2020, ADID launched a Social Impact Safety Team (A.S.I.S.T.) pilot program. This effort was initially deployed as a mobile response unit to build capacity in the homeless service system on a short-term basis while community providers and their outreach teams worked to resume uninterrupted service delivery to those experiencing homelessness on the streets of Downtown. 

In 2021, the socially responsible stakeholders who make up our Downtown business community continue to be concerned about the observed perception of homelessness on our Downtown streets.  As such, ADID maintains its investment in both people and property using an impactful approach to addressing homelessness through the innovative A.S.I.S.T. homeless outreach initiative.

A.S.I.S.T. aims to provide a timely response to: non-criminal, non-emergency quality of life, business nuisance, public disturbance, substance use, or mental health concerns in Downtown Atlanta with Social Workers and Community Outreach Workers trained in de-escalation and crisis management, and behavioral health advocacy with a network of direct connections to shelter, addiction treatment, therapeutic programs, and care providers for those experiencing homelessness in Downtown. Read about our outcomes here.

What drew you to becoming a partner in the exhibit?

I am always seeking ways to be actively engaged in social issues equally affecting our Downtown community, particularly those related to homelessness or issues of equity.  As a Social Worker, I see the exhibit as an inclusionary approach to social science merged with arts and humanities. I heartily support endeavors that uplift social consciousness.  

What do you hope people leave with or think about after attending the exhibit and events?

It is my hope that people leave thinking about the many ways our lives are very interconnected and that a community is made up of humans who simply decide to be good to one another – not one or the other.

To learn more about Broad Strokes on Broad Street art activism for homelessness click here.