The county is moving forward with an agreement that will reimburse the St. Francis House and the Alachua County Housing Authority for homeless services.
The county approved a two-year agreement with the city and the two organizations in October that said the county would pay $25,000 for an emergency shelter for the homeless.
The city will provide an additional $25,000 for the shelters.
The county recently received the paperwork necessary to pass the funding to the organizations, said county spokesman Mark Sexton.
The agreement is intended to provide funding for this year and next year. However, next year’s funding could be more or less than $25,000, depending on the available funds for the 2012-13 fiscal year.
Sexton said the funding will be distributed within the next two months.
Emergency shelter is opened whenever there is a threat to the safety of those who sleep outside. This includes when the temperature dips below 45 degrees, if it’s unbearably hot or if there is a natural disaster.
Kent Vann, executive director of St. Francis House, said his shelter was able to cover the costs out-of-pocket, but it has taken longer than usual to get funding from the county.
“We provide the services to the people that need it, then we bill [the county],” he said. “I don’t know why it took so long.”
On an average night, St. Francis House can shelter 35 people temporarily and an additional 33 people in permanent housing. During an emergency, it can open up to 60 additional beds.
The shelter routinely provides refuge during frigid nights, such as in 2010 when temperatures dropped below 30 degrees Fahrenheit.
The Alachua County Housing Authority provides low-cost housing to families and individuals in need of financial assistance.
Minnie Rolark, assistant director for Alachua County community support services, said this is the seventh year the county has provided the funding. She also said the county received the necessary papers from the city recently, and it’s not unusual for the payment to be delayed within the county.
“The paperwork has to go through two legal teams,” she said, “so sometimes it takes a little bit longer.”
Contact Shelby Webb at swebb@alligator.org.
