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A center that helps the homeless closes Friday, bringing the issue of what to do about them to the forefront.
By ANNE LINDBERG, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times, published June 19, 2002
LEALMAN -- A grass roots effort to solve the homeless problem here is taking its first wobbly steps as a local program to help the homeless prepares to close its doors.
At the same time, county officials have dropped charges of zoning violations against another group that serves the down and out.
Officials had claimed that the Solid Rock Church, which runs the Solid Rock Christian Recovery Center at 4224 28th St. N, was running a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility where only a church was allowed.
"We closed the case," said Bob Mortoro, who oversees county code enforcement. "We thought that it was too iffy. It was a little bit too much dictating what their ministry entailed. . . . We can't really dictate someone's ministry."
The Rev. Glenn Miller, Solid Rock minister, did not return a phone message asking for comment. Miller had maintained that the church did not violate any zoning regulations by offering a daily lunch to the homeless.
It's possible that the Solid Rock will be doing even more once the nearby Mid-Pinellas Homeless Outreach Drop-in Center closes Friday.
The 3-year-old center is closing because the property it rents at 4699 28th St. N has been sold. Rather than look for a new home, the center likely will close because there's not enough money to move, said founder and director Lynn Rogers. The center's $65,000-a-year budget is financed solely through private and business donations.
The result is that there will be no facility in the Lealman area to offer the homeless showers, toiletries, clothing, snacks or a weekly visit from the medical van. The about 35 people who visited the drop-in center each weekday also had a chance to use a phone, get referrals to other agencies or receive mail.
Rogers said she's hoping she'll be able to drop the mail off at the Solid Rock.
"My other big concern is the mobile medical van," said Rogers, who wants to find another place close by where the service can make its weekly stops.
The loss of the drop-in center comes at a touchy time for the homeless who camp in the area along 28th Street N between 38th and 54th avenues.
Some residents, tired of seeing transients wander the streets and camp in nearby wooded areas, have demanded that the county do something to drive them away. The county has cleared several wooded areas in which the homeless camped. But some residents now complain that has made the transients more visible.
Residents blame programs such as the Solid Rock and the drop-in center for attracting more homeless to the neighborhood.
"I know there's a lot of people who are really upset about the homeless," Rogers said. "The (homeless) people were here. That's why I came here."
In an effort to settle the simmering dispute, two board members from the Lealman Community Association have scheduled a public meeting tonight to discuss the issue. They've invited residents and business owners from the neighborhood, as well as county and state officials.
The goal, the community association's Marcie Lauster said, is to "start opening the doors to try to find a solution to this . . . make the county aware or more aware of the situation down here. It's going to be the first of a few meetings. We can't get anything done in one meeting."
But it's vital that something be done, Lauster said.
A portion of the Lealman community is in the throes of a revitalization effort. That has not extended to the 28th Street area, but it eventually will, she said, and everything that can be done now to solve the problem helps Lealman in general.
"I've heard some horror stories from some of these residents, and I've heard from business owners throughout the years," she said. "Everybody's not without compassion, but when the homeless ignore the business owners' and residents' rights, there's going to be some hard feelings."
Residents, advocates for the homeless and county officials will meet at 7 p.m. today at Lealman Fire Station 18, 4017 56th Ave. N, to discuss possible solutions to the homeless problem in Lealman. The meeting is open to the public. For information, call Steve Bleier, 527-8418.