PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Point in Time count, which measures people experiencing homelessness, will occur on Sunday, Jan. 25, and the Three County Continuum of Care stresses that every survey matters. 

 

Earlier this month, the CoC's data and evaluations manager Michele LaFleur and compliance manager Natalie Burtzos reviewed past data with the Homelessness Advisory Committee and discussed planning for this year's count. 

 

LaFleur described the PIT count as "our attempt to try and determine how many people are experiencing homelessness on a single night." Each year, it has to be conducted within the last 10 days of January. 

 

In January 2025, there were 215 Pittsfield people in shelter, and 12 people unsheltered. In July, 107 city people reported being in shelter, and 27 people reported being unsheltered. 

 

Of the unhoused individuals in the winter of 2025, 113 were people in families with children under 18. The PIT count for 2024 reported more than 200 people experiencing homelessness on that day. 

 

Pittsfield's shelter data consists of ServiceNet's individual and family shelters, Soldier On's shelter and transitional housing, and Elizabeth Freeman sheltering areas. The winter count has increased significantly since 2021, and the CoC conducted a summer count on July 20 that showed fewer people in shelters and more unsheltered. 

 

It was noted that the count misses people who are couch surfing or paying to live in a motel, as the reporting is on the burden of service agencies or community members who work with those experiencing housing instability.