ORLANDO, Fla. — The increasing number of people who are forced to live on the streets is a problem that is becoming increasingly widespread throughout Central Florida.
Celeste Claywell has stated that she is doing everything in her power to keep it all together, but as of late, the streets of Orlando have frequently served as her home.
It’s a shame. “Because there are so many people without homes right now,” Claywell remarked. “It looks like the best option for me is to just up and leave Florida.”
Only in Orange County are there more than 1,600 people who qualify as homeless, as reported by the Homeless Services Network of Central Florida. This number accounts for those who are housed in shelters.
The organization also claims that the number of persons living on the streets in Orange, Osceola, and Seminole counties has increased by 75% since the beginning of the pandemic. This equates to 587 people living and sleeping on the streets or in a car, rather than at a facility specifically designed to house the homeless, as opposed to 336 people in 2019.
On Monday, the city commissioners of Orlando presented their strategy to reduce the number of people living on the streets during the next three years.
The former Ambassador Motel, located at the intersection of Colonial Drive and Westmoreland, will soon be transformed into the Palm Gardens Apartments, which will offer affordable housing units thanks to a portion of the $58 million in federal funding that will be received by the city.
“We have to look at what’s the best use of the limited resources that we have, and I would contend that it would be ensuring that we have the affordable housing that is available,” said Orlando Commissioner Bakari Burns. “We have to look at what’s the best use of the limited resources that we have.”
Patty Sheehan, a city commissioner in Orlando, stated that she believes it is necessary for the city to “really protect our housing authority property and make sure that we add to the number of units available when they’re redeveloped.”
In addition, the city is investing in developing partnerships with organizations that provide services, such as the Christian Service Center, the Coalition for the Homeless, and the Salvation Army.
Buddy Dyer, the Mayor of Orlando, was quoted as saying that “homelessness is not something that you can end,” and that “you must work on it every single day.”
Dyer stated that the plan for the next three years includes attempting to add additional homes at more reasonable prices, particularly in light of the growing cost of rent.
In addition, the plan calls for expanding shelter services and facilities, working to add more programs like job training and fast rehousing help, and maintaining efforts to keep the streets cleaner and safer for everyone. The goal is to cut the number of people living on the streets by half.
According to Martha Are, CEO of the Homeless Services Network of Central Florida and the Central Florida Coalition on Homelessness, “Whenever the rent goes up by $100, the general accounting office says that people in our community will see an 8% or 9% increase in people experiencing homeless,” “We want to get people into housing where we can help them out as they struggle.”
