Melissa Ross
Growing concerns about homeless residents camping near the Volusia County Administration Center the past two weeks have led to a proposal to close the building.
It’s the place where residents pay taxes, get car tags, and take of other business. Homeless people have been using the location as a campsite since Daytona Beach closed a park. The building also houses courts and State Attorney’s Office workers, about 100 employees total.
The county manager apparently plans to move those workers to other offices throughout the county by the end of this week if the situation isn’t resolved.
Tuesday morning, County Property Appraiser Morgan Gilreath said he has closed his office because of safety concerns.
On Monday, Salvation Army workers tried to persuade some of the homeless to go to a nearby gym-turned-shelter by offering free meals and showers, but fewer than two dozen accepted the offer to leave the makeshift camp.
Meanwhile, Volusia County homeless advocate Michael Pastore said he’s sorry if anyone feels unsafe, but has plenty more to say in regular emails on the issue to media outlets, such as this recent missive:
“The power of social media. The thousands that I reach on a daily basis is (sic) a force to be reckoned with, never have I had more support for the homeless in Daytona Beach. The ‘neighborhood Nazis’ are freaking out that the City may be FORCED to confront the reality that their solution to ‘run the bums out of town’ is not and will not work (sic). The simple truth is that a short-term, temporary answer must be found for the 150-200 souls who call the streets of this city home.
“The City Manager with his mean-spirited actions of closing the parks and bathrooms and cracking down on the homeless to make their lives more miserable has backfired in a spectacular way. The issue is front and center for everyone to see. It is more than pathetic for these people with political aspirations to use this issue to further their goals. None of these people care about these human beings. It is not only property and business owners who have rights guaranteed by the US Constitution, it’s all citizens.”
Pastore has been accused by Volusia officials of orchestrating the gathering in front of the county building, an assertion he denies.
