Rochester ECHO Center reports 1,252 visits in last year

(ABC 6 News) – Rochester’s Empowering Connections and Housing Outreach (ECHO) Center reported 1,252 visits in its first year of service.

The ECHO Center, located next to the Rochester Community Warming Center at 206 4th St. SE, connects Olmsted County’s housing stability staff with people experiencing homelessness.

The Center provides application assistance for housing, health care and benefits, as well as replacements for ID cards and other documentation.

The ECHO Center also reported the following statistics between Oct. 2021 and Oct. 2022:

• Average of 104 people served each month
• 263 unique individuals
• 54 people housed
• 10 people who returned to another community (bus tickets)

“Making access easy and being able to provide housing information to the clients we serve gives them the best chance of making their experience with homelessness short-lived,” said Olmsted County Housing Resource Coordinator Trent Fluegel. “Olmsted County Senior Social Worker Jacob Radtke has helped create collaborative relationships with community organizations, and the ECHO Center has become a place for those organizations to come and help people experiencing housing instability.”

The ECHO Center is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. For more information, email housingstability@olmstedcounty.gov or call 507-328-7175.