Hawai'i will make further strides toward ending homelessness by better pinpointing the scope of the population and its needs, homelessness service providers said yesterday during a statewide forum.

Sandra Miyoshi, homelessness programs administrator for the state Housing and Community Development Corp., told a group of more than 100 people, ranging from government officials to homeless individuals, that a new council of service providers has developed a strategic plan to end chronic homelessness with the full support of Gov. Linda Lingle.

The chronically homeless, those with serious mental and drug- or alcohol-abuse problems, make up the most visible part of the homeless population and are considered the most difficult cases to move off the streets.

Miyoshi said specific goals have been established by the Interagency Council on Homelessness and will be overseen by government agencies.

"We have so many plans out there, and sometimes it gets frustrating when nothing actually comes of them," Miyoshi said. "Priority one is to improve data collection and to increase the political will to support positive change."

Lynn Maunakea, executive director of the Institute for Human Services, said each year during her eight-year tenure in that position, annual federal funding increased for homeless services statewide, including supportive housing, help for those with mental illness and efforts to build affordable housing.

"We have made a dent in accomplishing some of these goals," Maunakea said.

To continue reducing homelessness, she said, government and service providers must collect data to clearly understand the homelessness situation, work to prevent people from becoming homeless, help get the recently homeless back on their feet quickly, and continue to build programs and housing. There are an estimated 6,000 homeless people in Hawai'i on any given day and precious little shelter space.

The forum, a Homeless Awareness Week event, brought together representatives from each county at the Honolulu airport to discuss progress being made on each island. Maui, Kaua'i and Hawai'i counties reported ongoing efforts to build more one-stop service centers for homeless people, and emergency and transitional shelters.

Margot Schrire, chairwoman of the homeless advocate group Partners in Care, said bringing service providers together for a day gives them support for their work and hope that help will come.

"We learn from each other to become a stronger advocacy group," she said. "The Neighbor Islanders felt things are sometimes so Honolulu-focused that we need to empower other islands. We are getting there."

Debbie Kim Morikawa, director of the Honolulu Department of Community Services, said city officials are often criticized for having police remove homeless campers from public lands. But if there are complaints from the public and people are breaking the law, she said, the police are forced to act. Most complaints come from taxpayers saying they can't use parks and beaches because homeless people are living in them.

Morikawa said a common public perception is to see the homeless as one group rather than realizing that in addition to the chronically homeless, the population includes working families struggling to support children, and people who are ill or elderly and can't afford housing in Hawai'i's expensive rental market. She said that the political will to end homelessness will grow as the public better understands the situation and sympathizes with those in need.