Definitely should give a trial/go! Perhaps each church site (or public car park alike) should provide a space for one tiny house! Good for the site's safety and security!
It's IMO a good idea, but I think they should be mobile houses, easily to transport to other locations, like small caravans... And there should be an infrastructure for the needs of these people: ie. electricity, water and sanitary things. I think this can be done best in special areas designated for these houses, ie. like with camping/caravaning areas... Ok, the owners usually cannot afford to move the house to another city, but the community could/should help, IMO... By doing this, both sides will be helped... ;-)
They aren't designed for touring; the thing would fall apart on the highway over time. You would be best buying an RV like this...
There's always a apocryphal story going around Hawaii that the homeless problem is a result of well-meaning people on the mainland buying one-way tickets for the homeless to Hawaii. Easy to believe when you see the scale of the problem there, but haven't found any hard evidence that it's true.
think big when it comes to downsizing. Now, Hotel Shinjuku 510’s capsules, no larger than 6 1/2 feet long by 5 feet wide, and not tall enough to stand up in, have become an affordable option for some people with nowhere else to go as Japan endures its worst recession since World War II. <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/02/business/global/02capsule.html>
Not sure what you're definition is for "forever" considering most people do not live in a house forever. Regardless, a friend of mine that loves to hunt has a similar like small house as the one in the picture but with a nice patio. His was built 18 years ago and the only renovation he had done was to put in new windows and a new roof...standard stuff for a normal house these days. Houses like these aren't normally built in traditional neighborhoods unless done by some architect trying to win some kind of a design award or actually lives in it. I've seen a few like these in the Seattle area in old neighborhoods but not in some new suburb area. Both houses done by architects. I love them but not suitable for raising a family. Great for a couple living in a rural area or small house at near a ski resort or as a cabin in the woods in which you want it more livable than a traditional cabin. I lived in one for an entire summer (house sitting) when I was in college. Luxurious (custom) on the outside and equipped with everything a traditional house had. People always stopped by to view the house...a pain in the butt because you can be eating dinner at the table and then see some people looking through the window. The owner lived in one of those custom built 2 million dollar RV and always traveling the U.S. and Canada.
People in Japan are the kings of small apartment and capsule living. I wonder how does a couple hump away in one of those capsules. May be very disturbing for the other capsule tenants. Popular with students, temporary living, tourists and so on. An friend of mine had a job in Japan for one year as an English teacher. Came back to the U.S. with about 80k in savings due to spending very little on living expenses while living in one of those capsules. Funny because he doesn't even have a degree in English. In contrast, his degree is in Music and most of those around him living in those capsules were not homeless people...just people with traditional jobs or students or travelers. That makes me think that some areas that have cubicle living...they don't allow homeless (jobless) people to live in them.