City of Sarasota champions Housing First approach to homelessness
The toughest challenge may be selling the idea to the County Commission when the two boards meet on Friday, Nov. 6 The challenge: Over four to five years, permanently house 300 to 400 chronically...
View ArticleCollaboration on homelessness sputters in wake of County Commission’s...
County board directs staff to continue due diligence on shelter sites in unincorporated Sarasota County Last week, they seemed to have found considerable common ground. Today, once again, it appears...
View ArticleAnother point of difference arises over a homeless shelter during County...
In approving priorities for the draft of a document the county and city will submit to the federal government, views diverge over specific language On Nov. 10, the issue of establishing a community...
View ArticleCity-county board collaboration on homelessness collapses
A storm of confusion swirled Monday as the county commissioners pulled apart a city-county agreement brokered just three days earlier The Sarasota City and County commissioners seemed to have found...
View ArticleCity manager proposes new strategy in effort to revive discussions on...
County Commission discussion of plan anticipated as part of its Nov. 17 update on county efforts to find a shelter site During the Monday, Nov. 16, Sarasota City Commission meeting, City Manager Tom...
View ArticleMyrtle Street site top of list for Sarasota County’s homeless shelter site
Wherever the facility is located, Sheriff Tom Knight says, he is committed to working with its neighbors to make certain they feel safe Of the three remaining potential sites for a homeless shelter...
View ArticleCounty Commission rebuffs city proposal for a site swap to make space for a...
Sheriff’s reasoning for consolidated facilities on Cattleman Road has been cited several times since 2013, and the community’s homelessness consultant has ruled out that location for a shelter The...
View ArticleA four-month-old program to assist the homeless with housing wins extra...
SHIFTS will be able to double the number of beds it provides and add two caseworkers A pilot program created just four months ago to help address chronic homelessness in the community won plaudits and...
View ArticleVolunteers sought for Sarasota County committee to tackle the affordable...
Former commissioner has offered suggestions to spur policy revisions as the county undergoes an update of its Comprehensive Plan At the suggestion of a former Sarasota County elected official, the...
View ArticleCity seeks dismissal of ACLU lawsuit filed over homeless shelter issue
Nov. 23 motion in federal court cites lack of standing and inappropriate use of supporting material among its assertions On Nov. 23, attorneys for the City of Sarasota filed a motion in federal court...
View ArticleSarasota mayor questions tentative lower ranking of affordable housing among...
City Commission approves the draft lists on 4-1 vote, however, with the assurance that further public comment and board review will be part of the process A draft of priorities for the 2016-21...
View ArticleCity Commission mulling over park benches, four years after their removal
During its meeting on Monday, Dec. 7, the board will discuss whether to put the benches back in Five Points Park The centrally located Selby Five Points Park became the center of controversy in 2011....
View ArticleBenches slated to make reappearance in Sarasota’s Five Points Park
City Commission authorizes staff to come up with a plan for ‘activating’ the park Several passersby walked through or by Selby Five Points Park on the cooler but sunny morning of Dec. 8. Among them...
View ArticleCity seeks allies against shelter
Current and former city commissioners urge the School Board to get involved in county plans for addressing chronic homelessness, but School Board Chair Shirley Brown says the board will not insert...
View ArticleFunding sources remain key element of proposals to help the community’s...
Sarasota county and city staffs have researched food and beverage taxes as well as a special health and mental health taxing district As Sarasota County staff members continue undertaking due diligence...
View ArticleIn plans to address homelessness, shelter tour for the media fuels more...
During the outing for reporters, county officials defend sites under due diligence for a shelter, but city officials find fault with the county’s plan In September 2013, as homelessness issues...
View ArticleTraining offered for volunteers to assist with census of homeless residents
Sessions scheduled this week in Sarasota; donations also sought to pay for items, such as food and socks, to be given to the homeless The Suncoast Partnership to End Homelessness is seeking community...
View ArticleNixing latest shelter sites, county board to pursue outreach to Sarasota...
One business owner tells the News Leader of a new initiative a private group is working on to help ameliorate downtown problems with the chronically homeless Given a difference of more than $420,000...
View ArticleSarasota Police Department collecting donations for Teens for Jeans
Drive for homeless youth will continue through Jan. 25 For the third year in a row, the Sarasota Police Department is collecting jeans for the Teens for Jeans campaign, the department has announced....
View Article‘Where we’ve been; where we are’: County reaching out to the city on...
County Commissioner Paul Caragiulo, a former city commissioner, will attend the Feb. 2 DID board session The Sarasota County commissioners this week formally appointed their fellow board member, Paul...
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