Unofficial data indicates slight homelessness increase over 2024 

PIT Count volunteers talk to someone sleeping beside a sidewalk. Courtesy TaskForce Fore Ending Homelessness (1)
PIT Count volunteers talk to someone sleeping beside a sidewalk.
Courtesy TaskForce Fore Ending Homelessness

North Central Florida Continuum of Care (CoC) volunteers, staff and public safety personnel finished three days of surveying homeless people across five counties in North Central Florida on Thursday. 

Though the surveys have yet to be analyzed fully, and the numbers are not yet finalized to be certified by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), preliminary results indicate a slight increase over last year’s count. 

The data still needs to undergo a rigorous review and de-duplication process before it will be submitted in an annual report to HUD in accordance with federal requirements. Until the numbers have been verified in that way, they cannot be considered final, according to Jacob Torner, Taskforce’s vice president of programs.  

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But the CoC has also kept a running count of sheltered and unsheltered survey responses collected across Alachua, Bradford, Putnam, Gilchrist and Levy counties. That running count includes applications from 470 unsheltered survey respondents and 361 sheltered respondents. 

PIT Count volunteers pose in front of the progress dashboard. Courtesy TaskForce Fore Ending Homelessness
Courtesy TaskForce Fore Ending Homelessness PIT Count volunteers pose in front of the progress dashboard.

If the unofficial count is accurate, the total of 831 would denote a slight increase over the count of 759 released in the 2024 Council on Homelessness annual report. However, the count would still be well below the 2022 and 2023 totals of 925 and 1,006, respectively. 

Point-in-Time numbers in North Central Florida have fluctuated over the years, and the 2021 counts are not considered comparable with other years because of COVID-19. 

This year is the first time the North Central Florida count was run by a new lead agency, TaskForce Fore Ending Homelessness. United Way of North Central Florida previously served as lead agency, but decided at the end of 2023 to step away from the role, and when no other agencies had responded to a call for a replacement, concerns rose that homeless service nonprofits could be at risk. 

Then TaskForce stepped up, and CoC leaders voted unanimously in April to adopt the Ft. Lauderdale-based organization as the lead agency. 

Torner said the state has also asked TaskForce to consider supporting Dixie and Union counties as well, as the two counties currently have no CoC coverage. 

Changes in leadership at the federal level also affected this year’s PIT Count, in a much more jarring fashion. 

On Monday, the U.S. Office of Management and Budget issued a memorandum that would freeze federal aid, effective at 5 p.m. Tuesday. The memo spurred confusion across the nation as agencies, including the CoC, which depend on federal funding, grappled with the prospect of losing that funding. 

PIT Count volunteers administered surveys to people who appeared to be homeless in six counties. Photo by Glory Reitz
Photo by Glory Reitz PIT Count volunteers administered surveys to people who appeared to be homeless in six counties.

Within hours, TaskForce had drafted and sent a letter to U.S. Rep. Kat Cammack, R-Gainesville, calling for her support in “ensuring that Federal funding for programs addressing homelessness and domestic violence remains uninterrupted.” 

The letter notes that in 2024 alone, the CoC served 1,458 children who were homeless or at risk of homelessness, and 691 individuals fleeing domestic violence. 

By Wednesday, the White House had rescinded the memo, but widespread confusion still remains. 

“We understand that with any change in leadership or administration… you’re going to see changes,” Torner said in a phone call. “However, I do think that the right approach is for changes to be measured and done in a way that first understands the impact to communities, and so I’m hopeful that that will be the approach moving forward, while, I’ll add, that we’re prepared for the worst.” 

Torner said service providers throughout the community have contingency plans in case they suddenly need to scale back services to make ends meet. Those contingency plans are always in place, required by the CoC in case of financial, technological, environmental or other disruptions. 

Despite the mid-week memo confusion, Torner said the PIT Count went well, calling the memo an “unnecessary distraction.” 

Torner said TaskForce wants community participation in its work to address homelessness. The CoC is revamping its strategic plan, which was last updated in early 2024, and has called for community input on the topic through town hall meetings. 

“We can’t do this alone, not at TaskForce, not our COC providers, but we really want the entire community engaged,” Torner said. 

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