The Catholic Charities’ project has received the go-ahead – again.

The homeless haven is planned for the site at east Hillsborough Avenue and Harney Road near the Seminole Hard Rock Casino area.

Last month leaders stalled the project due to a zoning problem.

County Commissioners will vote on the issue during an October 13 meeting.

The recommendation reads that the “encampment support services shall include job search counseling and referrals to social services. The temporary use shall expire four (4) years from the date of approval of the PD zoning by the Hillsborough County Board of Commissioners.”

Catholic Charities, which has been pushing the tent city it’s dubbed “Hillsborough Cares,” has run into several road blocks due to zoning problems and issues with the casitas, or wooden sheds the agency intends to place at the site on Hillsborough Avenue near Harney.

Changes to the county’s Minimum Housing Standards code will exempt the casitas and tents if in a homeless encampment.

The proposed tent city has been at the center of heated debate. Homeowners in the nearby East Lake Park neighborhood have stood strongly opposed in fear it will impact property values and their safety.

Some homeowners created the ‘Stop Tent City’ group in protest.

Catholic Charities proposes to shelter 250 men and women at the site. According to the proposal, they would not stay more than 90 days.

While the commissioners had been debating the tent city idea for weeks now, many residents in the site area near east Hillsborough Avenue and Harney Road do not support the idea.

In July, commissioners voted 5-2 to review county law and define the conditions needed for the project’s approval.

residents and business owners said they fear decreased property values and increased crime.

The land is owned by the Diocese of St. Petersburg and the idea of a tent city there is similar to an existing one in Pinellas County.

Sources: http://www.wtsp.com

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