SEMINOLE COUNTY, Fla. – More than 107,000 people in Orange, Osceola, and Seminole counties are just a paycheck away from being evicted, according to a recent study.
And, as more people need help with housing and local governments are looking into the impact of Florida’s new camping ban, Seminole County is learning how much money its only emergency shelter needs this year.
Chris Ham, executive director of the Rescue Outreach Mission in Sanford, told county commissioners Tuesday that to maintain reserves at the current 180-day level, the shelter could use up to $280,000 for the rest of 2025.
Information provided during Tuesday’s meeting shows federal COVID-19 relief money used by the shelter since 2021, was fully expended in August 2024. Ham told News 6 that he’s been working to reduce the amount of government assistance needed to keep the shelter open.
Currently, it costs $38 per person per night to house someone at the Rescue Outreach Mission, according to Ham. He presented commissioners with other options to keep people off the streets now that there’s a state law banning sleeping or camping on public property.
So-called “dignity buses,” which were just approved for use by the city of Orlando, would cost about $78 each night, according to Rescue Outreach Mission’s estimates. This week. the Orlando City Council approved a plan to use funds from the American Rescue Plan Act to convert two Greyhound buses into overnight shelters.
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Numbers presented to commissioners in Seminole County show that it would cost about $106 per person per night to house someone at the jail. A hotel room would cost anywhere from $115-$150. And it would cost up to $100,000 per unit to build entry housing, such as a tiny home.
“We’re the most cost-effective solution,” said Ham. “We’re about $38 per person, per night, and every other solution is double, triple or quadruple that.”
Commissioners decided it would be best to continue discussions as they look at the full picture and what the entire county budget will look like for the upcoming year. Those conversations are expected to begin this summer.
Data available online from the Homeless Services Network of Central Florida shows that from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024, nearly 14,600 people needed help from its network because they were either worried about becoming homeless or were already experiencing homelessness.
Of those:
- 3,438 were children
- 1,217 were survivors of domestic violence
- 1,972 were veterans
- 1,806 were people with disabilities who had already spent more than a year unhoused
- 1,140 were age 62 or older
- 4,370 had no health insurance
“As we’re seeing more folks, evictions are happening, and folks are struggling with the cost of living,” Ham said.
Ham said 26 children stayed at the Rescue Outreach Mission on Monday night. He added that the family shelter is usually full every night.
The Rescue Outreach Mission is the only place in Seminole County that provides people with resources 24/7. Ham gave News 6 a tour of the family shelter where there are beds, laundry machines and a skills lab where kids can do homework or parents can apply for jobs.
He also showed us their “key wall,” where individuals hang a key when they find permanent housing. Ham said last year there were 248, and this year they’ve already successfully housed 45 individuals or families.
“We just had a family move out yesterday and they sent us photos this morning,” Ham said. “Their daughter was on her new bed. The grin on her face makes every late night, every early morning, everything that we do put into perspective.”
Ham said everyone deserves a safe place to call home.
“It’s not acceptable to me that we live in one of the greatest counties in the state of Florida and there are people still sleeping on the streets,” Ham said.
