TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Hope Homeless Shelter recently opened up 100 cottages to homeless residents. 

What You Need To Know

  • According to Tampa Hope, there were more than 2,000 homeless people in Tampa in 2023. 

  • With the cottages open, they can now house 210 residents. 

  • There are 100 cottages and 125 tents on site. 

Director Eric Marrero said the 64-square-foot homes took a lot of time to get ready for people to move in, but they'll make a major impact. 

"We've had them here for about a year now and we're just opening up," he said. "It took that long to kind of get through all the electrical constructions and everything to set them up and open them up to residents here." 

One of the cottage's new residents is Michael J. Benders. Before living in the cottage, he was in one of the 125 tents at the shelter. 

Benders said it's the little things that make a difference — like being able to lock his door and storing food and medicine on shelves — that make him feel like he has a place to call his own.

"It's a refuge for homeless people to get rid of the anxiety, the depression, and the stress that naturally comes on them because of being in a frail environment," he said.

According to Tampa Hope, there were more than 2,000 homeless people in Tampa in 2023. 

With these cottages, in addition to the organization's 125 tents, it can now house 210 people. 

Tampa Hope's goal is to move clients from temporary housing to permanent housing with a stable income.

There are plans to build another 100. When those are built, they'll be able to house 335 people when adding in the tents.