City Commissioner Jeremy Matlow Appears on Above the Fold

On November 28th, City Commissioner Jeremy Matlow discussed his first year as Commissioner, his relationship with the business community, and more on Above the Fold with Tallahassee Reports Editor Steve Stewart.

You can find the full Above the Fold interview from 11-28-2019 here.

Before being elected in November 2018, Matlow, who grew up in Tallahassee, started multiple businesses across the city, including Gaines Street Pies. After speaking at City Hall on issues affecting local businesses, he decided to run for office.

“We just wanted to open up government,” Matlow said. “We wanted everyday people to have access to everybody and to be able to come and give their opinion on issues and really be listened to.”

A highlight of Matlow’s first year as Commissioner was passing a new ethics ordinance, which he called “the strongest ethics ordinance the City has ever seen since 2014,” when the Ethics Board was created.

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The ethics ordinance came at the same time as another major moment: Matlow’s 1.4 out of 5 evaluation of City Manager Reese Goad.

“Obviously, I’ve been super critical in the City Manager in my review, what he’s done before I came into office, and a lot of the things that he’s done since I’ve come into office, and I don’t think he’s the right person to really help us restore the public trust,” Matlow said.

He said the Commission is “working overtime” to restore the public trust.

“Every decision we make, we have to let the public know what’s happening,” he said.

Near the end of the interview, Matlow addressed his relationship with the business community and said he is happy to meet and work with members from all areas of the business community.

“Largely, I think we want the same thing,” he said. “We all want stability. I come from a little bit different perspective because I know we have challenges we need to overcome to get to a real place on the top of the hill, that real place of stability.”

Looking forward, Matlow said major issues for the next year will be the Blueprint sales tax, use of economic development dollars, and the Northeast Gateway project.

For more interviews about local issues, listen to Above the Fold every Tuesday and Thursday at 11:00 a.m. on WVFT 93.3 FM.