Tent city to rise with a purpose
The organized camp for 250 homeless people opens Dec. 1.
By SHERRI DAY, Times Staff Writer
Published October 19, 2007
Where refuse and overgrown brush once dotted a 10-acre vacant lot in unincorporated Pinellas County, a campground has emerged.
It is the future home of Pinellas Hope, a site that will offer the homeless a place to live once winter sets in.
The campsite, which could house as many as 250 homeless adults beginning Dec. 1, is a pilot project initiated by Catholic Charities and the Roman Catholic Diocese of St. Petersburg in response to last year's tent city debacle.
Then, St. Petersburg police took down the homeless tents with box cutters, a slashing that garnered national attention. This time, the tent city will spring up with the blessing of city and county officials.
Since Catholic Charities president Frank Murphy and the diocese pitched the idea to local government and social service agencies in September, it has received almost unilateral support.
The diocese provided the land, and the city donated workers to clear it. County human services officials pledged $460,000 to help with operating costs. Private donors chipped in more than $500,000 to outfit the land with sewer and other utility lines. A local dry cleaner offered to clean laundry, and members of Religious Community Services said they would donate more than 50 nights of cooked meals.
"If we can provide a place for the homeless to sleep, take a shower, go to the bathroom and get a meal, that's better than sleeping on the street," Murphy said. "Nobody can argue with that."
Still, the project has detractors. Pinellas Hope's new neighbors, owners of salvage yards, trucking and construction companies and a shipping business, expressed mixed feelings about the coming tent city. They cited theft and safety concerns.
"I personally don't object to the project," said Greg Nichols, who owns a construction company across the street from Pinellas Hope. But "it's not a good site for people to live on. ... The only positive to the site is it's out of sight."
Undaunted, organizers say there is much to do before opening day. They must purchase tents and round up more volunteer groups to provide nightly meals.
Catholic Charities, which expects to donate about $150,000 to the effort, also must figure out how to get people to the site, which is tucked in an industrial area off of 49th Street and 126th Avenue and sits near the end of a dead-end street.
Organizers plan to use vans and buses to shuttle people from hangouts such as Williams Park in downtown St. Petersburg. They also plan to give residents bus passes because of the site's proximity to a bus stop.
On Thursday morning, Murphy and Catholic Charities' chief operating officer Sheila Lopez surveyed the site, which would open Dec. 1 and close April 30.
They envision a fenced-in area where trailers and modular structures line the perimeter, housing social services agencies, showers, toilets, computers and laundry facilities.
A large tent, situated in the middle of the campground, could serve as a place for residents to eat, watch television and unwind. Personal sleeping tents will likely sit toward the back of the lot, far from the public eye. If things go well, Catholic Charities may consider running the program again next winter. If the pilot fails, the agency will likely discontinue the effort, Murphy said.
Social services agencies, which largely laud the effort, say they will watch it closely.
"There's kind of an unknown for all of us," said Sarah Snyder, executive director of the Pinellas County Coalition for the Homeless. "The goal is not to just house (the homeless) for four months, but to get them off the street and to some more permanent housing before Pinellas Hope closes down."
Times researcher Carolyn Edds contributed to this report. Sherri Day can be reached at sday@sptimes.com or (813) 226-3405.
FAST FACTS: For more details
To read more about Pinellas Hope, visit www.pinellashope.org or call (727) 893-1313.