Tim McKinney is hoping promises of a bigger center with a wider range of services will persuade the county to move it to Bithlo.
Bithlo advocates are urging Orange County to build a homeless service center in their community.
Nearly two years ago, the county received an $800,000 grant to create a center where the homeless, or those at risk of becoming homeless, can go to get services including food, occupational assistance, medical assistance and clothing.
Ever since, the faith-based group that has been advocating for this center — Converge — has been looking for an existing building near Alafaya Trail and East Colonial Drive. So far, they’ve explored 33 properties, but all have been either too expensive or neighbors have balked at the center moving nearby.
Despite the long list of rejected properties, the county is still searching for a location in this area because a 2006 University of Central Florida study said it had the densest population of homeless in East Orlando.
“There are lots of needs in Bithlo and lots of precariously housed people in Bithlo, but the concentration of homeless individuals is not in Bithlo,” said Donna Wyche, manager for Orange County’s Mental Health and Homelessness division. “My marching orders right now are to stay focused on finding a centralized location until we exhaust all resources, and we don’t feel we’ve exhausted all resources yet.”
Charles H. Baxter, pastor of Bithlo’s New Covenant Church of Central Florida, disagrees. Each week, he said, New Covenant’s food pantry, Harvest of Hope, serves more than 400 people.
“I’ve offered portions of my property (to build a center) but there has been some resistance to go anywhere beyond Alafaya,” he said. “Although by numbers, now the need is greatest here.”
Tim McKinney, executive vice president of United Global Outreach, which has been helping to serve Bithlo's needs for the past several years, is working hard to persuade the county to move the project to Bithlo, where he says a bigger and better center can be built.
Why the sudden urgency? Community Health Centers recently purchased three acres in Bithlo and is planning to build a 10,000-square-foot medical facility in two years. By summer, they plan to open with one physician and a modular building. McKinney is hoping to fuse the county’s grant money with CHC’s resources to create a 40,000-square-foot “social center”. CHC interim CEO Tanya Stewart said she’d be open to such a partnership.
“UGO is going to do this anyway, but instead of waiting for us to raise the money, why not bring it here now?” McKinney said.
Karen Akers, who has been working the Samaritan Resource Center — a mobile service center created by Converge for those in need in East Orlando — said their busiest location is their Woodbury Presbyterian office, which is near the intersection of East Colonial Drive and Alafaya Trail. Their second busiest location is Harvest of Hope. They see an average of 30 people a week and have served 300 people since they started in September, with half being homeless and the other half at risk of becoming homeless.
"We have been asking the Lord for two-and-a-half years where he would like us to go and nothing has come up," Akers said. "If God calls us out to Bithlo, then we’re more than happy to be out there."
Samaritan offers services including food stamps, free cell phones, free haircuts, identification cards and birth certificates and help with benefits such as SSI and Medicaid.
McKinney secured loose agreements from several potential partners for the center, including Just 1 Book, which collects reading material for those in need, a laundry service company that will work in the center for free and education leaders who’ve promised volunteer teachers.
“We can bring to the table things that no one else can. We can rally all those troops,” he said.
Missing LYNX
McKinney has also been working with LYNX to upgrade public transportation in Bithlo, which has been lacking since LYNX cut their fixed route several years ago, replacing it with a pick-up line that has to be scheduled at least 24 hours in advance, has limited capacity and runs every 90 minutes.
Now, there are plans in the pipeline that could make service better than ever. The problem: no funding.
“We’ll do the scenarios for the community and share them with Orange County [and other funding partners, including private corporations], then everyone weighs in on whether they have money to fund that,” said Tony Walter, LYNX director of planning and development.
In a recent meeting with LYNX, Orange County District 4 Commissioner Jennifer Thompson learned that they are in the process of cutting costs so they can tackle gaps in service, such as Bithlo.
"There’s a possibility this could be funded. If they can save 20 percent across the system that could leave some dollars open to fund a Bithlo route," she said.
Baxter said plenty of people west of Bithlo travel to Harvest of Hope each week. In fact, he said nearly 20 percent of folks at their monthly Saturday pantry come from areas other than Bithlo and Christmas.
"In all of this, I think we must keep the needs of the people paramount. All of us win when the community is strengthened," he said.
Wyche said the main center should be built near East Colonial and Alafaya, but that perhaps in the future they could build a satellite office in Bithlo.
"I don’t underestimate the need in Bithlo or the issues they have in Bithlo, but we’re taking a step at a time," she said. "This drop-in center is the first step."
What the commissioners say
-Orange County District 4 Commissioner Jennifer Thompson
I grew up here so I know [Bithlo] needs it, but I’m being told the transient community is further west. That’s what the numbers show us. I'm not sure if that's reality because of the land and other obstacles in the way. I'm just as happy to have it in my district as I would be if it's in Damiani's district or Edwards'. As long as it's somewhere where it will be used and have the biggest impact.
-Orange County District 3 Commissioner Lui Damiani
I think they’re going to have to go further east to find land that’s not going to be disruptive to the community. Whether it should go as far as Bithlo, I'm not sure but it will clearly be used in Bithlo because there is a large contingent population. That might be the most logical choice right now.
-Orange County District 5 Commissioner Ted Edwards
I think before a final decision is made, the entire [Bithlo] community should have an opportunity to provide their input on whether that’s an appropriate location. We also need to have the service providers of that center and county staff weigh in. We need to make sure the targeted population of homeless people will be served by the location.