Revamped shelter in North Tampa offers clean housing for veterans

(Tribune News Service) — The first thing Michael Miller felt when he walked in the doors of the St. Vincent de Paul Cares homeless shelter for veterans on Monday was the air conditioning.

It was a much-needed break from the day’s hot and sticky humidity for Miller, a 48-year-old Army veteran who served in Iraq and South Korea. He was fresh off a plane from Los Angeles, having arrived in Tampa, Fla., just the day before.

Miller is the first veteran to stay at the revamped North Tampa shelter, which celebrated its opening on Tuesday. It includes 60 beds spread out across six buildings and one mess hall complete with a commercial kitchen.

“It’s kind of like heaven on Earth … a little piece of heaven,” he said.

Veterans are not new to the property, however. New Beginnings of Tampa, a nonprofit that houses veterans and has faced allegations of enabling hostile environments and suffered financial problems, used to operate the shelter.

But about a year and a half ago, the property fell into foreclosure and the 47 veterans that lived in the building were set to lose their homes. That was until St. Vincent de Paul Cares stepped in. The nonprofit seeks to end homelessness and serves counties across Tampa Bay.

The organization moved the residents into hotels and motels and, eventually, permanent housing within 40 days, said St. Vincent de Paul Cares CEO Michael Raposa.

The process to salvage the shelter was more complicated. Raposa said the building was in an “inordinate amount of disrepair” – the potable water coming into some of the buildings came from “questionable wells” and the wastewater was flowing into collapsed septic tanks.

The plumbing, electrical and roofing had to be redone. The doors, windows and drywall also were replaced. The renovations cost around $3 million and an additional $1 million will be diverted to the construction of an office center for shelter staff.

“Today, we saved it,” Raposa said, speaking of the property. “Yesterday, veteran No. 1 moved in … and we understand there’s a lot more coming quickly.”

Hillsborough County provided the funding for the renovations: $4.4 million in total from the State Housing Initiatives Partnership program, which provides state funding to build affordable housing.

Hillsborough County Commissioner Gwen Myers, who represents the area of North Tampa where the shelter is located, said there’s a responsibility to help the veterans who fight for the safety of the country.

“We cannot turn our backs on them but we can make sure that they get the necessary services they need,” Myers said. “Because they’re just like us, they’re looking for hope and opportunity.”

David Rappe lived at the shelter for nine months when it was run by New Beginnings. He recalled the poor cleanliness that inevitably led to bedbugs and roaches.

He would often spend his own money — from his disability and Social Security benefits — to buy cleaning supplies in an attempt to make the shelter more hospitable.

The difference now is night and day, he said.

“This was nothing like you’ve seen today. It was not a refuge,” said Rappe, a 71-year-old Army special operations veteran.

Seeing the change made him emotional when he stood at the lectern.

“Even old combat veterans get emotional sometimes,” Rappe said.

David Rappe, 71, lived in the shelter when it was operated by New Beginnings of Tampa. He now lives in his own apartment with his wife. (Ashley Neyra/Tampa Bay Times)

Rappe now lives in his own apartment with his wife, Liz, thanks to the help he received from St. Vincent de Paul Cares. He’s working to get his certification as a veteran-peer support specialist to help others like him and hopes to buy a house soon.

When veterans come into the shelter, they often only come with a shirt on their back, which may even be torn or tattered, Raposa said.

The shelter offers wraparound services, from providing clothes and three warm meals a day to finding permanent housing for the residents, he added. Veterans can stay as long as needed at no cost.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor of Tampa thanked Raposa and St. Vincent de Paul Cares for their work helping the city’s veterans “live their lives in dignity.”

“In the Tampa Bay area, we have very high expectations for taking care of our veterans,” Castor said. “And it’s not acceptable that any veteran would not have a safe, clean place to call home.”

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