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Tarpon To Hold Workshop On Homeless Problem

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By Mark  Schantz | The Suncoast News

Published: June 24, 2008

TARPON SPRINGS -- The topic of how to deal with the homeless problem is a complex and sensitive issue that is getting worse in Tarpon Springs, said Capt. Robert Kochen.

Starting at 6:30 p.m. tonight, Tuesday, the City Commission will discuss how to deal with the growing number of vagrants sleeping behind downtown buildings and wooded areas, according to Capt. Robert Kochen of the Police Department.

A recent Police Department report estimates there are some 26 homeless adults living in wooded areas and at other sites around the city. The availability of free kitchens and social service agencies that help the homeless has attracted them to downtown, the report concludes.

There are four separate meal programs, several social service programs and a day labor business attracting homeless individuals from outside the city into downtown, Kochen reported.

While most who seek assistance are poor people and families who have fallen on hard times, a few cause problems for those who work or visit downtown by panhandling and menacing people, police say.

Nicholas Manias, St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Cathedral Parish Council president, wrote the city stating several homeless individuals regularly come into the church office and demand money or food. Others sleep on cathedral grounds, urinating and littering.

Shopkeepers along Tarpon Avenue complain about homeless individuals sleeping in alleys behind shops, intimidating their employees and selling drugs.

Mark Schantz can be reached at 727-815-1075 or mschantz@suncoastnews.com.

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