Commissioner Murman’s guest column on ending homelessness appeared in the Tampa Tribune:

Sandra Murman: Ending homelessness in Hillsborough is a collaborative work in progress

As vice chair of the Hillsborough County Commission and a board member of the new Tampa-Hillsborough Homeless Initiative (THHI), formerly the Homeless Coalition of Hillsborough County, I wanted to share the remarkable progress made in the countywide effort to combat homelessness in the community over the past 18 months.

It is a new day in Hillsborough County as we begin to break the choke hold that homelessness has on the lives of more than 2,243 men, women and children, according to the most recent homeless count released in May. The specter of homelessness threatens the working poor, who are often only a paycheck away from losing their homes or apartments, even more.

Homelessness in Hillsborough is a community challenge that demands a community response. Government alone cannot solve this problem; it takes everyone in the community working together.

With that in mind, on Jan. 23 and Feb. 5, your county government took these positive steps toward the goal of ending homelessness in Hillsborough:

♦  The board of County Commissioners approved $2.3 million in contracts per year for two years with community service providers to address Hillsborough County’s portion of the community response to homelessness. Providers selected were Metropolitan Ministries, Salvation Army, and ACTS (Agency for Community Treatment Services), which will administer emergency housing assistance to homeless families and single adults. This program started March 1 and includes housing, in addition to comprehensive wrap-around services such as onsite child care, onsite family dining, workforce preparation, GED classes, and assistance with obtaining other benefits. In other words a “help up” to get homeless families and individuals back on their feet and productive in our community again: a $2.3 million investment (annually).

In addition:

♦  In 2013, in a public/private partnership, the county and private business leaders partnered with Gracepoint (formerly Mental Health Care, Inc.) to open Cypress Landings — a “Housing First” project that has successfully provided supportive services and housed 23 chronically homeless individuals, resulting in reduced substance abuse, reduced mental health symptoms, reduced emergency room visits and incarceration. This a $2.3 million investment: $2.1 million is a one-time investment; $200,000 is annually.

♦  In March of this year, a “Homeless Services Department” was created as part of the county’s restructuring. This department will work with THHI, county departments, as well as public and private agencies in the community that provide services to the homeless.

♦  The county partners with several external agencies, including the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office for the Jail Diversion Program. This innovative program involves providing case management to homeless individuals who are frequently incarcerated because of misdemeanor charges and mental health issues. As part of the program, clients are able to access referrals to other services and reduce expensive jail time. This is a $775,000 annual investment.

­♦  The county’s social services and homeless services staff are being trained concurrently with community nonprofits on how to best utilize THHI’s new Coordinated Intake and Assessment System, which will be fully functional later this year. Once implemented, the new system for persons seeking housing will identify personal or family needs based upon objective criteria, allowing all agencies interacting with the client to be knowledgeable about the client’s continuity of care and coordinated from whatever agency they contact. In addition, they will use tools to track the homeless and their activities and ensure more accountability and greater oversight of all housing unit conditions through required inspections. This should reduce service gaps and ineffective resource allocations. It is a $225,000 annual investment.

♦  The county is in the process of re-purposing the sheriff’s Work Release Center Building at 1800 Orient Road into an emergency housing facility. A request for proposal has been released for an organization to staff and operate this facility, which will shelter up to 184 homeless individuals on a short-term basis. This is a $2 million investment annually.

Total new investment for homeless services by Hillsborough County government, from multiple funding sources, is over $7.6 million; $4.9 million is recurring.

Our homeless veterans are very important to us. The county has been working with several partners in the community, and multiple initiatives are underway, including a housing project for up to 80 chronic homeless veterans that recently opened. No one who has worn a uniform for our country should be living on the streets.

We are acknowledging the expertise of outside agencies and partnerships with the private sector. The county is working closely with its partners to ensure accountability for delivering quality services and outcomes. These nonprofits have done an often overlooked, tremendously intensive job in providing counseling, and job and life-skill training — within what was barely a coordinated system. More importantly, everything we do to help the homeless is only effective if services are offered alongside the housing and programs they enter, and we are committed to that effort.

Still, a full understanding of the homeless plight is needed. Most citizens see homeless on the street corner panhandling for money, sleeping on a park bench, lining up at designated feeding sites, and congregating in alleys. Also, there are the countless homeless children in our schools who are couch-surfing every day from home to home.

The goal to end homelessness altogether in our community is one I share with my fellow THHI Board members, who are leaders representing the mayor’s office; the private sector, like Mark Fernandez from the Rays, Tod Leiweke from the Lightning, Guy King from M.E. Wilson and the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce, and Calvin and David Reed from Tampa Tank Inc.; and many others from nonprofits, education and government.

And with THHI’s new CEO, Antoinette Hayes Triplett, bringing her energy and expertise as former manager of the city of St. Louis’ Homeless Services Division, we embark on a new journey where we envision a time when families and individuals, including veterans, are off the streets and have the tools necessary to make their lives productive and successful.

There is still so much work to be done, but we are off to a great start. One obstacle is identifying and securing adequate housing stock for the formerly homeless, and this will be an ongoing process.

These challenges did not occur overnight, and neither will their solution. However, there is no lack of support or commitment to solving the issue of homelessness in Hillsborough County. We would not be where we are today without the dedication and support of County Administrator Mike Merrill, my fellow county commissioners, elected constitutional officers and other officials at the county and city levels, and the partnerships with nonprofits and the private sector.

Ending homelessness is a tremendous endeavor that may take a while, but for the first time in decades, our county, cities, the private sector and stakeholders are building a foundation by working together to solve homelessness.

To do it right, we need to take it one homeless person and one housing unit at a time.

Sandra L. Murman was elected to the Hillsborough County Commission in 2010. She served in the Florida House of Representatives from 1996-2004.