JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Last month, the News4JAX I-TEAM spoke with a man who is experiencing homelessness in Jacksonville.
You may remember Darell Dean. We met him outside of the Sulzbacher Center. He explained the challenges of living on the streets and how hard it is to get help in the River City.
“Jacksonville isn’t really helping the homeless,” Dean said. “Y’all going to end up arresting me again. I’m going to end up doing 30 days and getting back out in the same situation.”
Gov. Ron DeSantis signed one of the strictest anti-homelessness laws in America into law this year, banning camping and sleeping on public property.
“This was a mandate placed on us from the state legislature but without any funding,” said Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan. “If you’re going to get people off the streets, you got to have a place to put them.”
Deegan said the city needs to wrap its arms around those experiencing homelessness, especially with the new law now in effect. She said she has a plan, but funding is a key issue.
Deegan proposed around $11 million to fight homelessness as part of her 2024 budget.
But only around $2 million was allocated in the final budget approved by the Jacksonville City Council.
Now with the new state law, Deegan said the funding she proposed is desperately needed.
“So, when there is no funding, and there is a process that’s going to take millions and millions of dollars to solve, somehow you got to bridge that gap,” Deegan said.
Nonprofits are also feeling the impact of the lack of funding.
Dean said Changing Homelessness used to provide help but that hasn’t been the case recently.
“Darrell was one of the folks we assisted during COVID when we had a lot more options for folks,” said Dawn Gillman, CEO of Changing Homelessness.
Those options are now limited because $8 million in funding that came from COVID relief is now gone. Gillman said the organization relied on that funding from 2021 to 2023.
“It allowed us to do things like outreach and put people into motels and hotels and start up a unit that was actually going out talking to landlords that would be securing places to help us move people out of hotels into apartments,” Gillman said.
It also helped people who were in a pinch gain financial assistance for rent and utilities.
“Our shelter beds are full, so we have to expand the number,” Deegan said.
Deegan said the 500 beds available in Jacksonville are all full. Recently the council approved $1.3 million to supply more beds, but Deegan said it’s going to take more.
“Those things are expensive. It’s expensive creating the 24/7 wrap-around service. Every community that has been successful in finding a solution -- and that’s what we are looking for, a solution to homelessness -- has had 24/7 wrap-around services,” Deegan said. “To make sure the people who need drug treatment and the people who need mental health treatment, the people who need help getting a job, all those things are provided.”
So, how does the city fix all of this?
Deegan has a five-year plan that would not only get people off the streets but get them into the services they need.
“That’s the key. We don’t just want to recycle people off the streets, and they come back and just go to another part of the city,” Deegan said. “If we want a successful city, people have to feel safe, businesses have to be able to do their jobs and not worry about this issue. And the folks experiencing homelessness, it will only help our city economically and otherwise to make sure they are functional members of society.”
Deegan added the council will have to appropriate more funds to make sure the city can carry out the plan. She said her office will reach out to the state and see what funding they can provide, “because this initiative did come from the state.”
The Governor’s Office has not responded with a comment.
