The City of Orlando has halted plans to open a new homeless shelter in District 5.
The decision comes after a meeting Tuesday night at the Heart of West Lakes Wellness Center, where community members in attendance expressed major concerns.
"District 5 currently facilitates most of the social services for the City of Orlando and Orange County, and the residents are asking for a break," Interim City Commissioner Shan Rose said.
Rose said some residents have told her they feel like District 5 has become the "dumping ground" of homelessness and poverty services.
"Those are the quotes from an email that I received, that District 5 no longer wants to be the dumping ground, and I think we've got to find a happy medium balance,” she said. “We've got 13 municipalities here in Orange County. I think that everyone needs to collectively come up with how they will assist through this process.”
The original plans were for the city to spend $7.5 million to buy an unused warehouse on Washington Street in West Orlando. Rose said the proposal came in direct response to the upcoming state law taking effect on Oct. 1, banning homeless encampments and sleeping in public spaces.
The new law will hold municipalities responsible for people camping or sleeping in unsanitary, undesignated spaces or that could affect nearby businesses and people. It’s supported by a recent ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court which states that municipalities can now punish people for sleeping outdoors or in their cars, even when they have nowhere else to go.
"I will continue to work with the staff, the community, and other government entities to come up with solutions and advocate to end homelessness," Rose said.
The City Council was putting up funds from its Accelerate Orlando program, started in 2022, which leverages about $58 million of the American Rescue Plan Act, or ARPA, federal funding the city received post-pandemic. The city has committed the money to a “once-in-a-generation investment in homelessness, affordable housing, and community improvement.”
The now-suspended proposal was a lease-to-own agreement on an air-conditioned, 21,000-square-foot facility. The plans were to build up the site as a low-barrier shelter, meaning that requirements for entry would have been minimal and easy to meet. In other words, clients would not need identification and pets would be allowed.
The facility would have been a 24/7 operation to accommodate up to 250 people. Inside, clients would have access to some social services, such as employment assistance, healthcare and counseling.
According to Zeynep Portway, executive director at Samaritan Resource Center, there are no shelters on the east side of Orlando. She said Samaritan is the only drop-in center for people experiencing homelessness in the area.
“As far as I know there are no plans to build a shelter around us. SRC has been exploring opportunities to rent or buy housing that can be used as transitional or step-up housing,” she said. “The law that goes into effect in October is only going to add more barriers to housing for our unhoused community.”
Meanwhile, the west side of Orlando is home to a few dozen homeless shelters and drop-in centers. This is something, Rose said, residents are well aware of and want to see bear fruit.
“I think the underlying issue from the residents and the businesses is that we continue to spend, we continue to invest millions of dollars in the region, and yet we can't seem to find another location outside of district five to address homelessness,” Rose said.
Rose said the halt on the shelter plans doesn't mean the city is necessarily going "back to the drawing board." She said the city has a taskforce to address homelessness issues, and they've been working to address the growing need in partnership with local homeless service agencies and nonprofits.
"This isn't something that's brand new. The city has a director of homelessness, a senior advisor, and they've been looking at all things homelessness as it relates to the city of Orlando," she said.
The site is currently in a public and recreationally zoned area, but the owner filed in April to have it rezoned for industrial land use. Orlando's City Council will meet Monday afternoon to discuss an ordinance to rezone the building.
Lillian Hernández Caraballo is a Report for America corps member.
