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Agency Surveys Homeless In County

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By SHERRI ACKERMAN

sackerman@tampatrib.com

Published: February 27, 2009

TAMPA - It may be too early to know how the economy has affected the local homeless population, but organizers of Thursday's countywide homeless census expect an increase.

"People are needing help," said Rayme Nuckles, executive director of the Homeless Coalition of Hillsborough County, which receives 50 to 100 calls a day for assistance.

About 180 volunteers spent the day searching behind Wal-Marts, staking out labor pools, circling bus stations and scouring city streets to count homeless people. The census, conducted biennially, identifies gaps in services and is used to secure money from local, state and federal authorities.

Volunteers, including Councilwoman Mary Mulhern, asked people how long they had been homeless, where they were from, whether they were addicted to drugs or alcohol, and if they had been ill, among other questions.

"Our economic plight is really going to change the way we see the less fortunate," said Mulhern, noting downtown business owners often complain about the homeless people who congregate there. "It's all our problem. They have nowhere to go."

Figures for the 2009 count won't be available until mid-April. There were 9,532 homeless people counted in 2007 and 11,023 in 2005.

Reporter Sherri Ackerman can be reached at (813) 259-7144.

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