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Search for refuge getting tougher for homeless

In the latest squeeze, homeless people in downtown St. Petersburg have been forced to abandon a set of awnings along Central Avenue that provided shelter from the weather. As more development takes place, the homeless are finding there are fewer places where they are welcome.

By GRAHAM BRINK
Published January 19, 2006

ST. PETERSBURG - For nearly three months, William Loland spent his nights under the expansive awning at Sixth Street and Central Avenue.

He didn't want to leave. But Loland, like 30 or so other homeless people, knew he had to go or risk jail.

Loland walked away Tuesday evening, carrying his bed roll and everything else he owned, unsure where he'd wind up.

"Whenever we finally get a regular place to sleep, progress rolls over us," said Loland, 56. "It's suppose to rain, too."

It's the latest collision between the downtown building boom and a growing number of homeless people struggling to find viable places to sleep. Inevitably, the results are the same.

The stretch of small stores from 601 to 659 Central Avenue, long home to antique and second-hand stores, began attracting the homeless several months ago as businesses emptied out pending demolition of the building for a 15-story retail and condominium project. Prices are reported to start in the high $200,000s.

Loland and his vagabond companions would show up at sundown and leave as the sun came up. The awning fended off the rain. The many empty doorways hindered the wind. There was safety and camaraderie in numbers.

Loland sensed trouble when an official notice went up on one of the doors explaining that the project's first airing with city officials would be Feb. 1. Then, he arrived Tuesday to see the bad news stenciled in black paint along the awning: No Trespassing No Loitering.

Property owners decide whether to post the warnings.

The homeless thought the owner was okay with them staying under the awning, at least until construction started. Loland and many others heard that neighboring business and property owners weren't as keen on the idea of 40 homeless sleeping nearby each night.

"There was business pressure to get rid of us," said Jerry Toney, 40, who slept there for several months.

"It's City Hall," yelled Susana Price, 54. "It's (Mayor) Rick Baker doing this."

"The cops are always after us," Theresa Spencer, 45, concluded.

Loland wasn't concerned about who too blame.

"I know the owners should be able to make money. I know that we can't fight progress," he said. "But, it leaves us with nowhere to go."

Once the No Trespassing signs go up, Loland and the others said they know it's time to move on. With the building boom in downtown St. Petersburg, fewer vacant and rundown buildings remain to use as shelter.

Around downtown, the transient lifestyle has become even more peripatetic.

St. Petersburg police spokesman George Kajtsa said officers are strict about enforcing the ordinances after owners post the signs and contact the department.

"We don't have too many problems once the signs go up," Kajtsa said. "They know that if they are found in an area that is posted as no trespassing they are going to spend a night in jail."

On cold nights, Toney said it's tough to choose between violating a no trespassing notice and sleeping out in the rain.

"They force us into breaking the law, and then they ask why are we breaking the law," he said.

In 2005, 4,540 homeless adults and children lived in the county, up 11 percent from 2004, according to the annual census. The 2006 count will be performed this month.

Compounding the problem is a shortfall in emergency shelter beds, said Beth Eschenfelder, manager of social services planning for St. Petersburg. She's hearing more complaints about the homeless around downtown.

"Right now, we don't have enough places to put the ones who want shelter," she said. "It's hard to find good answers that please everyone and that we can afford."

A couple of dozen homeless people sleep out along the waterfront near Demens Landing. Others find refuge in Williams Park.

But with the Mahaffey Theater near the waterfront soon to reopen after a $20-million makeover, and another multimillion dollar retail/condo project going up next to Williams Park, Betty Hughes wondered if there would be any place left for the homeless.

Hughes, 59, tugged at her sweater as she contemplated her more immediate shelter quandary. She also worried that the church volunteers who often deliver coffee and water during the evenings would find her and the others if they had to move.

She asked Loland and a small group of fellow homeless where they should go.

Loland looked east and then west down Central Avenue.

He didn't reply.

[Last modified January 19, 2006, 18:18:02]