City manager criticizes county, Marbut shelter philosophy

As it pursues a location for come-as-you-are homeless shelter, Sarasota County has been following a series of guidelines established by consultant Robert Marbut.

Marbut was originally hired by both the city and county in 2013, but city leaders now find themselves trying to convince county officials not to follow advice they helped fund.

Currently, the county is considering three sites in unincorporated north Sarasota — including one across the street from the city limits — as potential shelter sites. On Nov. 16, City Manager Tom Barwin suggested an alternate shelter site on county-owned land near Cattlemen Road and Bee Ridge Road.

When the County Commission swiftly brushed away that proposal, Barwin was open with his disappointment. Throughout the process of searching for a site, Barwin said, the county has been unwilling to adjust its plans based on input from city officials, concerned about how a shelter might impact the surrounding communities.

“This is the biggest source of frustration,” Barwin said. “The city’s been dealing with this issue, 24/7/365. We know the individuals; we know the geography; we know the assets in the community.”

County homeless services director Wayne Applebee points out the county is listening to the city in at least one area, as staff is no longer considering shelter locations within the city itself. He says it’s important to follow Marbut’s advice, which suggests locating a shelter within close proximity to existing service providers and jail facilities.

"You don’t put a hospital in one place and put the emergency room 10 miles out." — Wayne Applebee

There will never be a perfect site that everybody accepts, Applebee said. If the county chose a more remote site, he argued, it would diminish the value of any shelter and jail diversion program.

“That has to be a balance,” Applebee said. “If we just put it where if affects nobody, then it won’t be an effective tool, and therefore it would be foolish to invest any money in it.”

That balance, Applebee said, is typically achieved by building something in the place where it is most needed. That’s why the county is looking at sites near the city.

“You don’t put a hospital in one place and put the emergency room 10 miles out,” Applebee said. “People would look at us like we were crazy.”

Barwin, however, questions the value of Marbut’s site criteria. He called the process of working with Marbut “borderline bizarre,” criticizing the consultant for his unwillingness to show flexibility based on the input of city officials. He added that Marbut has been a target of criticism for other homelessness experts.

The objection to a shelter in north Sarasota goes beyond the typical cry of “not in my backyard,” Barwin said. Residents have a reason to be concerned about the impact of a shelter and jail diversion program near a historically African American community that is already grappling with its own economic challenges.

"I don’t think they could have come up with a more problematic site if they paid a consultant." — Tom Barwin

“Nobody will engage with us in a conversation about revisiting the criteria,” Barwin said. “If people are calling this NIMBYism, they don’t understand anything about the city, concentrated poverty, issues of race in our society and what is sometimes called ‘economic justice.’”

Applebee said the county is not committed to any particular site at this point in time. Even when one is selected, he pledged that the county would conduct a thorough review of the feasibility of the site — including hearing any concerns from residents in the surrounding area.

“Those are the types of things will get aired publicly,” Applebee said. “We’ll address those things.”

Still, Barwin questions why the county is insistent on making the location such a high priority. Sites located in central Sarasota County would reduce the burden on the city and be more easily accessible for the county as a whole, he argued.

Pinellas Safe Harbor, a shelter in Pinellas County built with input from Marbut, is located between the cities of Clearwater and St. Petersburg, miles from the center of either municipality. Across the country, Barwin said, the city is finding similar examples of decentralized shelter sites.

"Nobody will engage with us in a conversation about revisiting the criteria." — Tom Barwin

To date, those arguments hasn’t swayed the county — and not for a lack of trying.

“You can look at many homeless facilities across the country and you can raise the exact same issues,” Applebee said. “You can go to many other communities and find there are schools near homeless facilities. If you put it near the urban core, you’re going to be near those things that are perceived as negative.”

If the county chooses to proceed with its top site, located near Myrtle Avenue and U.S. 301, Barwin believes it could have a significant negative impact on the city of Sarasota.

“I don’t think they could have come up with a more problematic site if they paid a consultant,” Barwin said.