President Obama has declared "zero tolerance" for homelessness among those who have served in the military, and a newly created center in Philadelphia will help his administration decide how best to tackle the problem.

In October, the Department of Veterans Affairs will open the National Center on Homelessness Among Veterans in University City, near the VA Medical Center of Philadelphia. Its purpose will be to steer national policy, conduct research, and educate the operators of VA programs on the most effective methods for reducing homelessness, said Vincent Kane, the center's director.

It will be "the engine driving change in VA practices around homelessness," he said.

As increasing numbers of soldiers return from Iraq and Afghanistan, there is heightened pressure to meet veterans' housing needs. Of the 300,000 who have come back from the Middle East, about 3,700 have cycled through the nation's homeless system, Kane said.

The decision to create the center in Philadelphia grew out of the city's concentration of expertise in the field, he said.

One of the experts on chronic homelessness is Dennis Culhane, a professor of social policy at the University of Pennsylvania. In addition, Philadelphia has a number of respected nonprofit agencies long experienced in working with homeless people, among them Project HOME.

The new center will be able to study approaches to the problem here, Kane said, and "learn what's most effective."

The $1.8 million initiative was announced in May. The center, which will have about 20 employees, will be affiliated with researchers at Penn, as well as at the University of South Florida. Kane said they would collaborate on research, and direct and monitor programs.

Recognizing the problem of homelessness among veterans, Congress has increased by 20,000 the number of so-called Section 8 rent-subsidy vouchers for veterans in the last two years. Kane said the number could grow by an additional 30,000 this year.

Noting that "the VA has really changed," Kane said the emphasis is on providing homeless vets with permanent housing and supportive services for such chronic problems as addictions and mental illness.

The VA's access to rent subsidies will allow the center "to test things out," Culhane added. "It's a great opportunity to come up with solutions."

One of the first issues the center will explore will be how to better serve homeless vets with addictions. Culhane said most programs for the chronically homeless are geared toward individuals with mental illness.

Kane said the VA had two other initiatives aimed at helping people who are homeless or most at risk of becoming homeless:

A $26 million program to rapidly rehouse vets using rental assistance, payments for security deposits, or help in mediating issues with landlords.

A $16 million pilot project to provide rental assistance for vets returning to rural areas or regions with high concentrations of military personnel.

The challenge, Kane said, "is how to reach vets earlier to prevent them from becoming homeless."