Outreach and Support Response

City of Gainesville officials believe in a compassionate approach to helping our neighbors experiencing homelessness.

Community Resource Paramedicine

The city dedicates personnel from Gainesville Fire Rescue (GFR) in efforts to assist the unhoused through the Community Resource Paramedicine (CRP) Program. The city’s CRP Program launched in 2014 with the goal of providing resources to vulnerable populations, improving quality of life and health outcomes, and reducing preventable 911 calls to lower the demands on EMS providers.

Homeless Outreach and Prevention Pillar

  • The CRP Program operates a Homelessness Outreach and Prevention (HOP) Pillar. The HOP Pilot Program initiated patient contact in 2021 with a part-time, grant-funded position (then called Resource Technician with a current equivalency of Responder I).
  • A full-time, city-funded Responder I position was added in the fall of 2023.
  • The HOP Pillar added its first full-time Responder II position in 2024.
  • CRP is currently staffed with a Program Coordinator, four Responder I (EMTs), and three Responder II (paramedics).
  • Similar to the other CRP program pillars (chronic disease management, recovery response and community health), the Responder I and Responder II assigned to HOP focus on both medical and social needs to increase quality of life and health outcomes.

The HOP Pillar has been steadily growing over the past three years, as evidenced through rate of referrals of houseless neighbors to area support services:

  • 32 referrals in 2022
  • 41 referrals in 2023
  • 137 referrals in 2024
  • 61 referrals in 2025 to date (as of April)

Since 2024, the HOP Pillar has tracked patient care data.

2024 Data

  • 738 patients visited
  • More than 250 hours of direct patient care provided

2025 to date (April)

  • 309 patients visited
  • More than 118 hours of direct patient care provided

The HOP Pillar has two standing weekly meetings with the unhoused community.

  • On Monday mornings, the HOP Pillar is available at Grace Marketplace. This is primarily to speak with new individuals who would like to engage in CRP services.
  • On Wednesday afternoons, the HOP Pillar is at Bo Diddley Plaza (BDP) for one hour. This is primarily for unhoused neighbors who have interacted with the Downtown Ambassadors. The Ambassadors hand out laminated cards with HOP information, including a list of the services CRP provides and the date and time to gather at BDP to meet the team and explore support options.

GRACE Marketplace

The city financially supports GRACE Marketplace in providing an outreach team and day services that include meals, showers, laundry, computer access, clothing and more. In Fiscal Year 2025, the city’s budget allocates $1.5 million for GRACE annual operations, plus $350,000 specifically to address the houseless population in downtown Gainesville and an additional $200,000 for continued services at GRACE for non-sheltered guests.

  • In March 2024, the CRP Program began overseeing 10 city-funded beds at GRACE Marketplace; these were available specifically for houseless neighbors who expressed an interest and willingness to be housed following engagement with CRP staff.
  • In early 2025, this increased to 20 available beds.
  • From March 2024 to April 2025, 95 neighbors were sheltered in city-funded beds; the total nights occupied was 3,403.
  • From March 2024 to April 2025, only three neighbors who requested beds at GRACE Marketplace were unable to receive them; two had previously been trespassed and one was a recent GRACE discharge (less than two weeks) with a pattern of no progress and unwillingness to engage in shelter services.

House Bill 1365

Between May and October 2024, the HOP Pillar began talking with the unhoused community about House Bill 1365. In January 2025, HOP began to make encampment referrals as part of the myGNV reporting process. By April, the team had actively engaged with 29 encampment referrals in addition to established patient management and new referrals connected to routine outreach.

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