The church ministry behind East Orlando’s homeless shelter, which was closed last year due to unsafe living conditions, is hoping to build a new expanded complex with more shelter beds and services. Masu.
Kaleo Ministries once ran a makeshift homeless shelter south of E. Colonial Drive at Harrell Rd in 1717. Called the Hope City Revuge, it housed as many as 120 people at a time in the bankhouse and reused the storage containers. However, the county fire service officials closed the facility last March, and the conditions at Hope City shelter raised “serious lifestyle safety issues,” and the facilities had adequate fire detection, prevention and control devices. It was filed by a court claiming that it had not.
The application submitted to Orange County by planning consultant Kendell Keith requires approximately 6.2 acres of rezoning at the same location, including 120 emergency housing units, 120 transition housing units, a 9,000-square-foot drug treatment center, Allows 9,000 square feet of 9,000 square feet. GrowthSpotter reported in the field of education and management. The site plan calls for emergency housing to be built in a single building, but the transitional housing will consist of five new buildings next to the central gathering area and play area. Management and support services buildings will also be built in the middle of the complex.
Despite the critical need for more facilities for the homeless in Central Florida, given the long-term conflict over previous shelter operations, how Orange County will respond to proposals from the Kaleo Department? It’s not clear. And, like other shelter proposals, opposition from the neighborhood emerged.
The new shelter offers increased capacity and an expanded footprint as the old facility was built on top of the one-acre property. It also probably offers safer living conditions depending on the code.
Firefighter William Farhatt said at a press conference last March that the county tried to work with Kaleo Department to provide fire extinguishers, installed smoke detectors on the building, and 24-hour “fire protection” on the old facility. Explained that logs are required. The Rev. Marcos Diaz of Kaleo Province argued that the housing was safe, but Farhat said the department did not comply with the county’s requests.
“It was a matter of trying to provide a little more safety in a very dangerous situation,” Farhatt said at a press conference. “However, there was no movement to correct any property violations by the owner.”
The proposed Hope City Refuge Complex is scheduled to go ahead of the Orange County Planning and Zoning Committee on March 20th. Applications for a new shelter complex were filed in 2023 before the old facility was closed.
Representatives of Keith and Kaleo Ministries did not respond to requests for comment.
The application documents show that Hope City Refuge will be used as “a Florida Safety Space Program for residential adults aging from foster care, as well as a crisis center to serve existing homelessness in the community.”
There is no discussion about the need for more facilities for the homeless in the area.
“We don’t have enough shelter and we have more people on the streets,” said Martha, CEO of Central Florida’s Homeless Services Network.
The Homeless Services Network conducts annual point-in-time counts for homeless people in Orange, Seminole and Osceola counties. The latest count was made at the end of January, but the results may not be available until spring. Data collected in January 2024 counted 2,776 homeless residents in three counties, up 38% from 2,007 counted in 2020. The unsheltered population rose 138%, up from 459 in 2020 to 1,094 in 2024.
Approximately 55 residents attended a community meeting for the proposed Hope City shelter in September. There were only a few participants who were favorable for the project. Neighbors expressed concern about how the project will affect property values, crime rates and traffic nearby.
Another proposed shelter in Orlando’s Sodo district also encountered widespread neighbourhood opposition. Orlando City Council approved the preliminary contract in November. This could allow the city to convert the dorm portion of the former Orange County Work Release Center, which previously had around 300 beds, into a shelter. The agreement allows the city to use it on a county-owned facility at 130 W. Kaley St.
However, many SODO residents are opposed to the proposed shelter, and even Orlando Health, which has a nearby SODO campus, is opposed to the proposal. The main competition is the city’s plan to turn the facility into a “low barrier” shelter that does not require drinking.
“There are many challenges in ensuring that location choice, neighborhood concerns, structures are appropriate, meet population needs and provide quality services, and in almost every case, almost everything. “In a community, neighborhood resistance is a big deal.”
Any tips on developing Central Florida? Please contact me at (407) 607-8160 or tywilliams@growthspotter.com. Follow GrowthSpotter on Facebook and LinkedIn.
