Small details continue to cause tension between Sarasota city and county leaders regarding the handling of the homelessness problem in the community. As the commissions for each government prepare for a joint meeting in November, the most recent point of friction was whether to hear a presentation by Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri about the operations of Pinellas Safe Harbor. But while disagreement grabs headlines, officials from both local governments still hope common ground can be found and a solution can be agreed upon.

Sarasota County Commissioner Charles Hines earlier this month suggested Gualtieri be invited to a joint meeting, an invitation made after hearing the sheriff discuss the program’s successes at a Florida Association of Counties meeting. Safe Harbor has been the subject of tremendous debate in Sarasota largely because it was born out of the recommendations of Dr. Robert Marbut, a consultant later hired in Sarasota to offer solutions to homelessness here. Marbut has also encouraged local officials to open a similar shelter, with supporters praising the idea as a way to transition people off the streets and critics calling it a jail diversion program that doesn’t address chronic homelessness in a permanent way.

But when Sarasota city officials initially questioned including a presentation on Safe Harbor, Sarasota County scheduled the sheriff to speak to county commissioners on Oct. 13 at a county meeting in Venice. “We have invited city officials to attend,” said County Administrator Tom Harmer. In the end, Gualtieri wasn’t available to attend the Nov. 6 joint meeting anyhow. But Sarasota City Commissioner Shelli Freeland Eddie voiced upset that city staff spoke for commissioners on the scheduling matter without speaking with the elected officials first. “Although the previous commission received considerable information on Pinellas Safe Harbor, as a new commissioner, I’d have liked to have a mini-report,” she said.

City officials have remained supportive of an alternative philosophy to a shelter, namely Housing First, which focuses on getting homeless individuals into permanent homes. The county has remain steadfast in support of opening a shelter to intake homeless, as suggested by Marbut. 

But Doug Logan, city director of Special Initiatives, said the focus of staff going into the meeting is on finding common ground. “We need some to understand that the guy who is sitting on a bench 400 yards from here may not be ready for a house immediately, and if he ends up drunk in the middle of the night has to be taken somewhere, so there has to be a transitional entryway,” Logan said, “but ultimately, a homeless person at the end of the day is still homeless. We need to create a climate so that a healthy exchange can take place.”