Every January, members of the Hunger & Homeless Coalitions of Collier and Lee fan out across the two counties to estimate the size and make-up of our local homeless population.
As the annual count in Immokalee, Fort Myers and Naples resumes, those of us on the frontlines of the battle expect a troubling trend to only increase: the rising number of unhoused seniors as well as military veterans. In many cases, those in need fall into both categories.
In Collier, the 2023 count identified more than 700 people living on the street — an increase of over 50 percent from the previous year, and one attributed to increased displacement after Hurricane Ian. That included nearly 200 seniors (a nearly 400 percent increase) and 51 veterans (more than double the previous year’s tally).
Our region rightfully earns kudos as a retirement paradise, a late-in-life getaway where sun, sand and ample free time continue to draw throngs of snowbirds as well as new arrivals.
MULLIN
Beneath that shine, though, a chronic shortage of affordable housing for workers, coupled with increased life expectancy and a lack of veteran services (including mental health services and housing assistance), has turned our community into a national case study of this growing crisis.