ORLANDO, Fla.,None — A new program is coming to Central Florida to get homeless men off the street for good. The Homeless Coalition of Central Florida is building a new men's service center on West Central Boulevard in Orlando.
The organization has a similar facility for women and children. WFTV's Tim Barber asked officials why they decided to wait until now to build the new one.
Rickey Powll spent a year in the men's pavilion at The Homeless Coalition of Central Florida. It's where he said he got sober.
"Coming here -- it showed me a better way of life being in the first step program," Powll said.
But when he got out, getting a job and finding a new home was tough. So the Homeless Coalition's president Brent Trotter is building a new men's service center to help.
"The reality is that many of these men are ready, willing and able to work," Trotter said.
For the first time, men will get a case worker who will help them with social and financial skills, as well as getting a job or an education.
"There is no excuse of being lazy, there is no excuse of missing a day because you are right here," Powll said.
The new building is going to be two floors and more than 30,000 square feet, which is twice the size of the old men's pavilion, which will be torn down.
Trotter said it will give men a new lease on life. But we found out The Center for Women and Families has been providing the same program for years.
WFTV asked Trotter, "Why wait so long for the men?"
"You know what? That is a very good question. It is way, way overdue," Trotter said.
Funding is one reason, but the organization is getting most of the nearly $6 million for the project from a federal grant.
Powll said it will be worth the money to help people like him get their life back on track.
"That gives them an opportunity to have a good job, and be motivated to keep that job," Powll said.
The program will also help with V.A. benefits and housing options. The organization is expecting to break ground on the building in the next few weeks.
Officials said that just like The Center for Woman and Children, the Men's Service Center will provide case workers who will manage individual plans for each homeless person.
They will work on social skills as well as financial skills, such as how to manage a savings account.
It will also help them get an education or find a job.
Currently, the men's pavilion is just a drop-in shelter where up to 375 men can get a warm, dry place to sleep.
Coalition officials said the new program will allow them to do more to help get the homeless back on their feet.