Wes Parnell and Kenneth Lovett are reporting for the New York Daily News data compiled by state Assemblymember Andrew Hevesi and the Coalition for the Homeless shows that more than a quarter million state residents were homeless at some point during the past year. That number is greater than the population of every community statewide except New York City and Buffalo. And approximately three out of every five of those homeless people were of school age, a 68 percent increase since 2011. “Things are really bad,” said Shelly Nortz, of the Coalition for the Homeless. “We’re not even treading water on addressing homelessness. It’s a problem that manifests itself in ways that are both seen and unseen.” Hevesi is a Democrat who represents Queens and he chairs the Assembly Social Services Committee. He said the state relies too much on shelters rather than finding ways to keep people in their homes. Hevesi supports a Home Stability Support program to reduce reliance on homeless shelters by creating a new rent subsidy to keep people in their residences. The measure, which has widespread bipartisan support in the Legislature, would cost the state and feds $450 million. Hevesi said the state now has more than 90,000 shelter beds, but most of those beds are in New York City. Aides to Gov. Andrew Cuomo said a $20 billion anti-homeless and affordable housing plan pushed through by the governor several years ago is leading to more supportive housing and the construction of affordable rental, senior and middle income housing. Read the full story in The Daily News.