19 people arrested for trespassing at County’s Budget Inn

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Nineteen people were arrested yesterday and charged with trespassing after utility workers reported that multiple people were squatting at the County’s Budget Inn property.

At about 8:49 a.m. yesterday, calls were received from two Gainesville Regional Utilities workers who had gone to the Budget Inn property, 4401 SW 13th Street, to work on the meters and retrieve stolen property. However, they found multiple people apparently living on the property and significant damage to the buildings on the property; multiple utility meters were reportedly missing.

The property is owned by Alachua County, and a 10-foot chain-link fence surrounds it; “No Trespassing” signs are posted around the property. The door of each unit had previously been secured with door locks and Master locks, and the windows had been boarded up. All of these measures were defeated by forced entry. Multiple windows and doors were broken, and the buildings were in various states of disarray. Several missing utility meters were found inside various units.

After a County representative indicated that the County wanted to press charges for trespassing, deputies arrived and encountered multiple people. Some walked away, ignoring deputies’ commands, and some ran from deputies. Gainesville Police Department officers arrived to assist.

Over the next three hours, deputies and officers detained 19 people and cleared every room on the property. Many rooms were reportedly barricaded from the inside to prevent entry. One juvenile who was not accompanied by legal guardians was reportedly found on the property.

Several suspects had active warrants, and deputies will be adding charges of resisting without violence, drug possession, and providing false identification information to the initial trespassing charges.

Alachua County Communications Director Mark Sexton told Alachua Chronicle, “In general, we don’t feel like the best way to handle the homeless is putting them in jail, where they won’t get the help they need, but this was a really egregious situation with thousands of dollars in damage and unsanitary conditions. We will now be hiring security to be on the property every day, and we are in discussions to put a Sheriff’s Office satellite office on the property.”

Names and booking photos can be seen in today’s Jail Booking Log; each suspect was charged with “TRESPASS: NOT STRUCT/CONVEY VIOL POSTED NOTICE.”

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. 

  • County buys property.
    Property is removed from tax rolls.
    People damage property, likely never able to pay restitution for damages.
    County now must pay for security, with tax dollars.
    County then suggests a satellite ASO office, at additional cost to tax payers.

    Poor use of our tax dollars. Sell the property.

  • Thank you GRU employees! And a belated, yet heartfelt, thanks to ASO.

    From the TV20 report: “Sheriff’s office officials say they responded to the vacant motel more than 30 times this year. An incident report was filed in six of those instances. Until Thursday night, county staff did not direct deputies to press charges on squatters on the property.”

    Which county staffer made the decision not to file charges in the other 20+ incidents? Why should voters agree to more taxes if the County doesn’t take reasonable care of what they’ve already got?

    • Dem leaders crave human misery like this, it’s their whole reason for being. The party of losers 👹🤡🍦🍦🍦D

  • Mark said, “In general, we don’t feel like the best way to handle the homeless is putting them in jail, where they won’t get the help they need..”

    His logic is weak, because they are not getting the help they need while damaging and squatting on public property.

    • That’s a bone to his friends to not getting pi$$ed at the commissioners…

      This is loony tunes type stuff.

    • The logic is strong. Warehousing the homeless in jail is enormously expensive, with basically no chance of changing their behavior. The County has many services to help those trying to get their lives in order. That should be the focus. If the Sheriff jailed everyone who squatted where they shouldn’t, our jails would be overflowing

  • Let’s raise taxes and fees on criminal law firms, an occupation tax. Every time a repeat offender repeats, we cite the lawyer’s firm a $10,000 fee per incident.

  • Looks like the county won’t be able to provide free narcan and needles to this group

  • What happened to having to go through legal hoops to evict persons who have taken up residence ( as we legal landlords must do), versus just forcably removing them?

  • Didn’t the county pay like 3 million for this property, then budget the same to renovate it? 6 million for 42 bedrooms? Plus ever ongoing upkeep? Much cheaper to expand the jail and give them 3 hots, and a cot.

  • SO so so, if it cost the county directly, as this has, only then does the homeless drug addicts problem effectively demands a change.
    SO WHAT IS THE COUNTY EVER TO DO?
    Again, Boeing Never changed ANYTHING on their aircraft, until a plane crash affects their profits.

  • Another great fiscal decision made by a group who is as competent utilizing county taxes as the city leaders use of city taxes.
    Those wanting to deflect the blame somewhere else, look in the mirror. The majority of voters in Alachua County voted for them.

  • >