Below are statistics in a report completed by USF at the end of the experimental period the facility was operating under from Dec 07 – April 08, you can view the entire report HERE - A followup study recently revealed that only 5% of those discharge were still off the streets after 6 months!!

 

  • The primary reasons cited for unsuccessful discharge were residents whose status was unknown or disappeared (19.7%), noncompliance (15.0%), or voluntary withdrawal (10.5%). A small percentage (2.2%) were jailed for possession of drugs or drug paraphernalia, dealing in stolen property, felony battery, or criminal mischief. Five residents were hospitalized because of psychiatric or medical issues during their stay at Pinellas Hope and one other resident died of unknown causes.
  • Of the 189 successfully housed residents, 51 (27%) received financial assistance at discharge. Without financial assistance for initial rent and/or utility costs, etc., the success rate might have been lower. (p 3)
  • Outreach is primarily directed toward finding homeless people who might not use services due to lack of awareness or active avoidance. (p 3)
  • Pinellas Hope will find itself competing with established social service providers for limited community resources. (p 3)
  • Nearly half of the homeless surveyed reported having a disabling condition. Drug or alcohol addictions were the most frequently cited conditions, followed by physical disabilities and mental health problems. (p 4)
  • An analysis of jail data from 2005 through April 2008 showed that 3,789 unique individuals with an address listed as “transient” were arrested. Almost all arrests among this population were for …offenses such as open container, drinking within 500 feet, trespassing, panhandling, and disorderly intoxication. (p 7-8)
  • If an applicant was clean and sober, had income, and appeared highly motivated, the Teams would make placements directly into community transitional housing facilities. Pinellas Hope, on the other hand…was therefore better suited for the long-term homeless who had numerous personal obstacles to overcome before successfully transitioning into housing. (p 9) This means that Pinellas Hope takes on unmotivated homeless that are not sober.

·         They are paying at least $400 per night for an off-duty police officer to monitor the facility. (p 11)

·         There is one case manager assigned to 50 people. (p 11)

·         The Success Training and Retention Services (S.T.A.R.S.) program of Pinellas County Health and Human Services, enrolled interested persons in job readiness training on a bi-weekly basis. S.T.A.R.S. discontinued their on-site services in February due to a lack of participation from Pinellas Hope residents. (p 13)

·         After the Catholic Charities summary report was received, questions still remained about how “successful discharge” was defined. For example, “What was the source of support for those housed without income?” (p 15)

·         Pinellas Hope reported on duplicated residents served… data includes information only on each person’s most recent stay at Pinellas Hope. (p 15)

·         As far as the program’s overarching goal of reducing street homelessness…it is impossible to know if the numbers have changed since 2007. During the operation of the Pinellas Hope Pilot Project, the City of St. Petersburg instituted ordinances aimed at reducing overnight public sleeping and other transient behaviors. Thus, any reductions in street homeless during this period might be attributable to ordinance enforcement. (p16)

·         We cannot determine if they were “successfully transitioned out of street homelessness” (p 17)

·         Successful discharges included “those later housed with rent vouchers from Health and Human Services…and persons without income placed in substance abuse or mental health residential programs.” (p 20)

·         Of the 189 people successfully discharged, 50 (26%) were employed (overall 14% discharged with jobs).

·         74 individuals (16%) were arrested following their admission to Pinellas Hope. (p 26)

·         Only 56% of the tenants said they were experiencing homelessness for the first time. (p 26)

·         The 22 EMS transports from Pinellas Hope… the reasons for transports from both facilities were hemorrhage/lacerations, unconsciousness/fainting, breathing problems, chest pain, alcohol abuse–unspecified, abdominal pain/problems, and psychiatric problems. (p 26)

·         Why tenants had to say about Pinellas hope… (p 29-30)

§         “Putting up with people who aren't here for the reason the place was set up for.”

§         “I have never really became comfortable. It’s embarrassing being here.”

§         Improvements tenants suggested… (p 31)

·         Institute drug screen or testing for new admissions

·         Add more case managers

·         Offer housing alternatives to tents

·         instituting a reward system for working within the facility

·         greater monitoring of the facility and computer usage

 

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