This expansion strengthens our ongoing commitment to serve our brothers and sisters experiencing homelessness with compassionate care.

Many community leaders and partners were present to mark this important milestone, including Tampa Mayor Jane Castor, members of the Tampa City Council, Father Anthony Astrab, pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Ybor City, and Maggie Rogers, executive director of Catholic Charities Diocese of Saint Petersburg.

Executive Director Maggie Rogers reflected on how far the program has come since its early days. “We started with 100 tents up on platforms,” Rogers said. “And then we partnered with the pallet company, and we started purchasing those with the gracious donations and funding from donors, as well as the city of Tampa.

Located on the Tampa Hope campus, these new cottages provide enhanced living conditions, including increased space, improved insulation, interior wall panels, and heating and cooling systems. The cottages offer a more comfortable and welcoming environment that better meets the daily needs of those it houses.

With the addition of these new units, Tampa Hope now features 215 cottages, some of which allow for double occupancy, bringing total cottage capacity to 236 individuals. Combined with 116 single-occupancy tents, the facility can now serve more than 352 individuals at a time.

Since opening in December 2021, Tampa Hope has significantly expanded its reach—from initially serving 100 individuals to now assisting nearly 350 at any given time, with plans for continued growth. To date, the program has served more than 1,900 individuals and helped nearly 700 transition toward more stable living situations. 

To view a local news story about the new cottages, click here.

For more information about Catholic Charities, click here.