Homelessness dilemma grows

By Andy Fillmore Correspondent

Editor’s note: In coming weeks, the “Gazette” will explore other aspects of this subject, such as the role of nonprofits and barriers to shelter.

Steve C. compares his homelessness to being trapped in a dark tunnel.

“There’s no way out,” he said.

Steve, 53, a native of Pennsylvania who says he’s been homeless for “quite a while,” said things began to unravel for him when his wife died and he “overdosed twice.” He was most recently living in a tent in a camp in the 700/800 block of Northwest 38th Avenue that he said was a “peaceful” place. Around 30 other people and three RVs were on the 68-acre parcel out of view from the main road—until the owner came to town to check on his property with a possible sale pending.

Law enforcement officials issued trespass warnings to those living at the site. Many of the homeless have since struggled to find somewhere else to live in the aftermath.

This is just the latest example of a growing problem in Marion County and elsewhere, where communities are trying to help the less fortunate meet a basic human need: shelter.

Field workers from the Office of Homeless Prevention (OHP), the local agency that provides critical outreach efforts to connect the homeless with available services, had visited the encampment as far back as September, a city spokesperson said. OHP returned to the encampment after the police ordered those living there to leave.

There are a number of services available in Marion County, both government-related as well as private or through church-based organizations. There also is a project expected to be finished later this year that will create a day center providing everything from meals, laundry facilities and showers to resources to locate birth certificates and other records.

In some instances, however, there appears to be a disconnect between these services and the people they are intended to help.

Infrastructure

To gain an understanding about how government, private, and charitable groups are involved, the “Gazette” reached out to several local groups for an update on a major undertaking that started in 2017 to address the homelessness in Marion County.

That year, the not-for-profit Marion County Public Policy Institute, or PPI, began a study called “Homelessness: The Long Way Home.” The PPI published recommendations two years later in the areas of leadership, comprehensive planning and funding. One recommendation was to eliminate the Marion County Homeless Council and form the Ocala/Marion

See Public, page A5