Pinellas Ex-Offender Re-Entry Coalition
WEST REGION
$1.75 million FCLF financing
for acquisition and renovation
66 housing units with supportive services

“The mission of the Pinellas Ex-Offender Re-Entry Coalition is to help offenders to become and remain ex offenders – tax paying citizens reunited with family and friends and no longer a burden on the criminal justice system. This project, on which we are partnering with the Florida Community Loan Fund, will have significant impact in a positive way for public safety in Pinellas County and beyond. We are grateful and excited to work with FCLF on this project!” – Michael Jalazo, CEO/Executive Director

After a person has served time in prison, upon release they need support in many areas from the surrounding community – areas such as housing, counseling, job training, and employment opportunities. The Pinellas Ex-Offender Re-Entry Coalition, or PERC, offers this support to ex-offenders in Pinellas County. The organization’s vision asserts that the successful re-entry of offenders, who become and remain ex-offenders, is an excellent public safety policy.

With $1.7 million in financing from Florida Community Loan Fund, PERC has purchased and will renovate a motel into 66 program housing units, to offer transitional services to a total of 132 residents. The motel’s former banquet and meeting areas will be converted to classroom and office space, providing on-site classes and counseling sessions designed to aid residents’ transition to society, and offering the convenience of having these classes in the same location as housing.

Since 1988, PERC has provided services to thousands of ex-offenders and their families. In addition to its work in Pinellas County with Pinellas County Government and a host of providers, the organization regularly partners with other organizations locally, statewide, and nationally, including Career Source Tampa Bay, the Florida Department of Corrections, the Department of Justice, and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, to name a few.

Pictured, future office and classroom space for the PERC transitional housing project.

Learn more about PERC at www.exoffender.org.