In Focus: Palm Bay’s Path to Addressing HB 1365
Tackling Homelessness with Compassion and Compliance
In October 2024, Florida’s House Bill 1365 (HB 1365) went into effect, mandating municipalities to prohibit unauthorized public camping and sleeping on public property unless designated shelters meeting specific criteria are established. This legislation presents a dual challenge to cities like Palm Bay: maintaining public safety while addressing the needs of its vulnerable homeless population. With civil actions against non-compliant cities allowed from January 1, 2025, Palm Bay’s leadership has been working diligently to align with the law while upholding its community values.
Homelessness in Palm Bay: A Snapshot
Palm Bay is part of the Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA), which ranks sixth in Florida for homelessness, with 779 unsheltered individuals. By comparison, the Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach MSA, which ranks first, reported over 3,000 unsheltered individuals, highlighting the scale of the issue in larger urban centers relative to Palm Bay. Chronic homelessness in the region has surged by 72%, from 207 individuals in 2023 to 356 in 2024. Rising housing costs, mental health challenges, and long-term unemployment are significant contributors to this crisis.
While precise figures for Palm Bay’s homeless population are elusive, available data suggests a concerning trend. In 2024, Brevard County reported 1,116 homeless individuals, the highest count since 2016. Earlier estimates from 2022 indicated about 300 homeless individuals in the Palm Bay-Melbourne area, likely an undercount due to hidden homelessness. These statistics underscore the urgency of addressing this growing challenge.
Key Provisions of HB 1365
Prohibition of Public Camping: The bill bans unauthorized public camping or sleeping unless designated shelters are provided.
Shelter Standards: Designated sites must meet criteria such as clean facilities, behavioral health services, and prohibitions on drugs and alcohol.
Civil Enforcement: Residents and business owners can file lawsuits against municipalities failing to comply with the law.
Emergency Exceptions: Provisions are suspended during declared emergencies, such as natural disasters.
Palm Bay’s Response to HB 1365
Palm Bay has initiated a proactive and collaborative approach to address the challenges posed by HB 1365, contrasting with potentially more reactive or enforcement-focused approaches in other municipalities. Specific steps include engaging diverse stakeholders, like local non-profits and advocacy groups, to design comprehensive strategies that address both immediate needs and long-term solutions. Additionally, the city’s focus on hosting workshops and surveys has helped refine strategies to better align with community input. The city has engaged community stakeholders, including non-profits, faith-based organizations, and service providers, to gather input and explore potential solutions. Key efforts include:
Housing Programs: Leveraging resources from the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG), HOME Investment Partnership, and State Housing Initiative Partnership (SHIP) programs to assist low- to moderate-income residents.
Affordable Housing Initiatives: Identifying publicly owned land suitable for development and collaborating with organizations like Habitat for Humanity and Volunteers of America to build affordable housing.
Community Engagement: Conducting an online survey and hosting workshops, such as the December 17, 2024 session, to gather public input and refine strategies.
Statements and Actions by City Council
During the December 17, 2024 workshop, Palm Bay’s City Council emphasized the importance of balancing enforcement with compassion. Council members discussed initiatives such as the proposed “Stand Down” event and the potential for creating designated shelter zones. Mayor Rob Medina underscored the need for collaboration with regional partners and non-profits, stating, “We need to ensure that our strategies are inclusive and address the root causes of homelessness.”
Councilman Kenny Johnson advocated for increased funding for mental health services and substance abuse treatment, recognizing these as critical barriers to stability for many individuals experiencing homelessness. Councilman Chandler Langevin emphasized the importance of maintaining public safety, suggesting enhanced coordination with law enforcement to ensure compliance with HB 1365 while connecting individuals to resources. His approach stood in contrast to council members advocating for increased funding for social services and supportive housing initiatives, highlighting differing priorities within the council. While Langevin focused on enforcement to maintain order, others emphasized the long-term benefits of addressing homelessness through comprehensive care and prevention strategies.
Proposed Solutions: A "Stand Down" Event
One innovative proposal gaining traction is hosting a “Stand Down” event, inspired by military practices to provide centralized access to essential services. Similar events in cities like Seattle and San Diego have demonstrated success by connecting hundreds of homeless individuals to critical services such as housing assistance, medical care, and employment resources in a single day, showcasing the potential impact of this approach. The proposed event would:
Provide transportation support for attendees, ensuring accessibility.
Provide assistance with Social Security Disability and Veterans Administration claims, particularly for veterans, to streamline access to vital benefits.
Assemble service providers under one roof, including healthcare, housing agencies, mental health professionals, and job placement services.
Offer immediate assistance such as medical care, meals, clothing, and showers.
Include follow-up services to guide individuals toward long-term stability.
Establish metrics to track the success and effectiveness of services provided, ensuring that future events can be tailored to maximize impact and relief.
This collaborative strategy has received strong support from community leaders and stakeholders, such as commitments from local non-profits to provide staffing and resources, and faith-based organizations offering logistical support, emphasizing its potential to address critical needs efficiently.
Challenges in Compliance and Public Sentiment
Palm Bay faces logistical and financial hurdles in complying with HB 1365. Designating and maintaining shelters that meet state standards requires substantial investment. Estimates for such facilities range from hundreds of thousands to over a million dollars annually, depending on size and scope. Palm Bay has explored potential funding sources, including federal grants like the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and state-level housing programs. However, budget constraints and competing priorities remain significant hurdles.
A notable example of such misconceptions arose from comments by Councilman Chandler Langevin, who emphasized maintaining public safety and warned against Palm Bay becoming a “magnet” for homelessness. Critics contend that this perspective may oversimplify the issue, ignoring the systemic factors driving homelessness and the shared regional responsibility to address it.
Public sentiment toward HB 1365 is mixed. Proponents highlight its potential to improve public safety and sanitation, while critics argue it criminalizes homelessness and displaces vulnerable populations. Palm Bay’s approach seeks to balance enforcement with outreach and support services.
Law Enforcement’s Role
The Palm Bay Police Department has adopted a compassionate enforcement strategy. Officers prioritize connecting individuals with resources before considering penalties, aiming to balance enforcement with meaningful support. This approach includes identifying individuals' immediate needs and coordinating with service providers to address them proactively. To enhance effectiveness, the department plans to expand trauma-informed care training and assign officers to work closely with outreach teams, fostering trust and reducing conflict. Additionally, the police are exploring data-driven methods to track the outcomes of their interventions, ensuring continuous improvement in addressing homelessness-related issues.
Palm Bay’s Broader Efforts to Address Homelessness
Palm Bay utilizes a multi-pronged approach to combat homelessness, leveraging state and federal programs including:
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program: This program is federally funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). It provides resources for community development activities that benefit low- and moderate-income residents.
HOME Investment Partnerships (HOME) Program: Also federally funded by HUD, this program offers financial assistance to create affordable housing for low- and moderate-income families.
Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP): Another HUD initiative, this federal program focuses on revitalizing communities affected by foreclosure and abandonment.
State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) Program: This state-funded program, supported by the Florida Housing Finance Corporation, provides financial resources to local governments for developing and rehabilitating affordable housing projects.
The city also offers direct assistance through programs such as the SHIP Waitlist Application and the SCAT Bus Voucher Program, which improves access to essential services. Collaborations with organizations like the Brevard Homeless Coalition further amplify these efforts.
Recent Initiatives and Regional Collaboration
In response to HB 1365, Palm Bay has:
Held a Council Workshop on December 17, 2024, bringing together community leaders, churches, and nonprofits to explore collaborative solutions.
Launched an online survey at www.pbfl.org/unhoused to gather public input on addressing homelessness.
Explored partnerships with advocacy groups to enhance emergency shelter transportation services.
Palm Bay’s efforts are supported by regional initiatives like Brevard County’s HOME-ARP Allocation Plan, which guides federal funding toward addressing homelessness.
Next Steps for Palm Bay
To ensure compliance with HB 1365 and address homelessness effectively, Palm Bay is pursuing the following priorities:
Exploring Temporary Shelter Zones: Identifying and designating areas that meet safety and service standards.
Strengthening Partnerships: Collaborating with nonprofits and neighboring municipalities to pool resources and share best practices.
Investing in Affordable Housing: Accelerating the development of transitional and permanent housing units.
Enhancing Wrap-Around Services: Expanding mental health and substance abuse treatment, job training, and transportation services to promote self-sufficiency.
Monitoring and Evaluation: Establishing metrics to assess the impact of initiatives like the Stand Down event and adjusting strategies accordingly.
Conclusion
Palm Bay’s efforts to navigate the requirements of HB 1365 reflect a commitment to addressing homelessness with both compassion and compliance. While challenges remain, the city’s proactive approach—grounded in collaboration, innovation, and accountability—offers a promising path forward. By leveraging community partnerships and investing in sustainable solutions, Palm Bay aims to not only meet legal mandates but also foster a more inclusive and supportive community for all.
I agree with John. The direction Palm Bay is taking is not helping the tax paying residents that fund the city budget. The more affordable housing, homelessness programs etc. we provide, the more it will attract. Palm Bay needs to raise the median income to attract desired and needed businesses to our city, not lower it. Has anyone asked "What is Suntree or Viera doing about homelessness?" Palm Bay needs an overhaul in thinking.
Compassion should not be as much a Government function as it should be more a faith based community outreach. Government is for enforcement, such as stop the panhandling at busy intersections. Many of these folks need full-time medical care and need a place to be cared for, while others just need a job to get back on their feet. What is needed is a program that can detect and separate the truly mentally ill from the able bodied person. The States use to provide metal institutions for the mentally insane. That all ended in the 70's and 80's and that is when the homeless problem started to grow across the country. The responsibility of caring for the mentally ill should be the States to house these people in institutions where they have a warm place to live and get the proper food. For the ones that need to recover from drugs and alcohol can be addressed locally and be placed in a work program to help them provide for themselves. Many of the people who panhandle make very good money for doing so. We need to take away that incentive, and focus on the truly mentally ill and get them a safe and clean place to live and be cared for on a State level. Local communities can't meet the need to provide housing for people who can't care for themselves.