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couples. Three couples obtained housing. Three couples are unknown; they moved on. And two couples were assisted by Resurrection House into motels, but they are back [to] tenting out in the county. That left three women. One got a live-in job, one was a sex-trafficking victim — and I drove her to Safe Harbor in Pinellas — and one moved away. Of the men, one went to The Salvation Army, three moved, four left and returned, and three never left." When a reporter from the Sarasota Herald- Tribune reached Marbut, seeking comment about the HOT team's efforts to abolish the camp, he called the attempt counterproduc- tive and possibly in violation of a Miami federal judge's ruling in the Pottinger case. The City Commission reacted with a 3-2 vote, banning not only the use of such teams but caution- ing against police visits to homeless people's and vagrants' encampments. This was seen by some vagrants as a "hands-off" city pol- icy. The City Commission asked Marbut for a written reply to a series of questions, but to date he has not responded. In the 10 weeks since the "hands-off" decision, the visibility and aggressiveness of vagrants and the homeless in the downtown area have increased, as has public unease, evidenced by a virtual parade of speakers at every City Commission meeting since then. City police officers have stepped up their visibility down- town, but the City Commission's decision to stop HOT activity, as well as enforcement of outdoor lodging ordinances, meant police officers had to witness a violation before tak- ing action. A FEELING OF HOPELESSNESS During City Manager Tom Barwin's latest mandated update on activity concerning homelessness and vagrancy, he said a newly (From left) County Commissioner Joe Barbetta, City Commissioner Paul Caragiulo, County Commissioner Nora Patterson, then-Vice Mayor Willie Shaw, County Chairman Charles Hines and then-Mayor Shannon Snyder listened to a speaker during a joint session on April 1. Photo by Norman Schimmel Can we create a process that we won't be accused of stalling? Willie Shaw Mayor City of Sarasota Sarasota News Leader June 6, 2014 Page 23