On Monday, September 4, the Big Bend Labor Chapter (BBLC) hosted an event to help veterans and their families who are experiencing homelessness at the American Legion Hall on Lake Ella Dr. However, comments from some local officials -including City Commissioner Jeremy Matlow – introduced politics to what was supposed to be a donation drive.
After the event, Commissioner Maltlow posted on his social media, thanking the “Labor Council for hosting this event today, raising funds and supplies for homeless services and to all of the leaders in our community dedicated to making a difference!”
However, during the event, when Matlow addressed the attendees he promoted the electoral success of progressive candidates with a look toward gaining majorities on the city and county commissions.
“Since 2018 every open seat that did not have an incumbent has been won by a champion of people. Weather that’s our seat in 2018, Commissioner Jack Porter in 2020, Commissioner O’Keefe at the County. People in Tallahassee are ready to see majorities standing up for their values.”
City Commissioner Porter and County Commissioner O’Keefe were in attendance.
Matlow then took a shot at “developers.”
“Our tax dollars are benefiting wealthy developers that just want tax breaks on their new development for roads that neighborhoods don’t even want to see…”, said Matlow.
In addition, former County Commissioner, Property Appraiser Akin Akinyemi noted that more people-focused local elected officials like Commissioners Porter, Matlow and Okeefe can overcome big insider money.
And finally, Leon County Teachers Association (LCTA) President Scott Mazur – who spoke at the event advertised as a “donation drive” for homeless vets – took the opportunity to highlight “attacks against teachers.”
TR is seeking to find out if other elected officials were invited to the event.
Labor Union Event for Homeless Vets Turns Political added by Steve Stewart on
View all posts by Steve Stewart →
There are NO homeless veterans in Leon County. Find me one and the VA will help them free of charge. Wanting to live in the woods and take drugs is not a homeless veteran. Free choice is what that person wants. Please stop using the word “veteran” when it does not apply!
My own take is that program(s) that will work with our veterans won’t have nearly the same success with the general population. Vets are used to success, structure in their life, taking direction from their superiors, etc. Putting them into a similar environment to transition will have familiarity to them. I don’t have any confidence that the program will be anything more than a free residence for most of the the non-vets out there.
@ David T. Hawkins, YES. I really like that idea. I would like to talk more about it. They have spent more than 10 times that amount in the past 20 Years on Homeless projects and ideas and still nothing to show for it. I hope you win, we need more people like you in office, you have great ideas.
Homelessness is an economic model to the progressively-Marxist tax-n-spend Democrats. The more homeless you have in your city/county, the more Federal Tax Dollars you can draw down to waste or feckless and failed virtue signal programs. The reality is, they don not want to solve the problem… in fact, they and their policies contribute to it.
Politicians been talking about it and have spent millions upon millions upon billions of our tax dollars claiming to “address” the problem… and yet, they have accomplished NOTHING, and here we are… again. And as evidenced by this event, the homelessness issue has value in a political campaign whereby clowns like these folks can claim to care and blame the other guy.
Remember, the motto of the progressively-Marxist Democrats is… “Always More; Never Enough”
I was homeless and Tallahassee did NOTHING for me except give me a bedbug infested mattress at the local homeless shelter and a can of baked beans for lunch. The minute I got a job I left that place. BTW: The homeless shelter smells like 200 pairs of unwashed feet. FACT.
There is far too much wasted energy on elected officials running their re-election campaigns 24/7. While energy should be expended on jobs and the economy most of the elected officials participate in directing taxpayer monies to nonprofits that are ineffective, waste tax dollars on PR events, or who attend pow wows at the mayor’s house to garner a few votes to push him over the finish line. Why the local GOP did not file an election interference complaint with the elections commission on that one I’ll never know, oh… that’s right, the local GOP was involved in getting Mayor DAILEY. elected misusing their own funds to do so.
Nonsense and Corruption rule the day and the day they bring in a competent new city manager who is not the CEO of Kick Back Enterprise – formally known as City Hall – nothing will change.
Voters can take responsibility and vote out Curtis Richardson and Tallahassee would have a new city manager and a new beginning.
IMO the County Commissioners and the City Commissioners and Mayor El Stupido have absolutely no intentions of reducing homelessness and no intentions of reducing crime. The trend for each has worsened on their watch
The commissioners are not concerned about raising your taxes during a Bidenomics Recession to fund their wacko liberal agenda.
No wonder everyone voted for him. A rare truth teller
I have this posted on my Campaign Web Site and I believe in it.
You can pass all the Homeless Ordinances and Programs you want but, until you actually do something FOR the Homeless, the Ordinances and Programs will not work. Both the City and County Commissions have thrown big Money at this problem over the years and yet none of it went to actually trying to solve the actual problem to help the Homeless.
You must first acknowledge that, to help the Homeless, you have to actually HELP the Homeless. We start by building a Gated Quonset Hut Community. Starting with Ten Quonset Huts and having room to expand to 20 with each measuring about 40×100 Foot. One is used as the Shower facilities that will also house the Laundry Facility, one will be used as the Kitchen and Dinning Hall, one will be used for the TV & Rec Hall, one used for the Offices and Classroom with Internet while six are used for housing, more can be added as needed. Yes, like an Army Boot Camp.
The Quonset Huts are set up, side by side lengthwise. You start with 10 to 20 acres of land, build a square -U- shaped Road to divide the property into three equal strips. The Activity Quonset Huts will be in the middle while the Living Quarters Quonset Huts will run down the outer parcels. We know the Community needs to be on a Bus Route therefor, there are few places to choose from to buy 10 to 20 Acres, that is why we should act fast before Developers snap it all up.
To maintain the Property and Buildings, Cooking, Cleaning, Grounds Keeping, Maintenance, you assign Jobs to those staying there that are able to do them. Doing this will give them time to get cleaned up, get the help they need and hopefully find a Job. It will also give them an Address so they can receive their Benefits, especially since many of them are Veterans. The hardest part of this project will be to keep the Commissions from over designing and over spending on it, there is no need to even do a Study on it. Simple and basic is all that is needed for this. 10 Acres could hold up to 30 Quonset Huts with plenty of green space between them and around them as well as the Interior Road and Parking. You are not building all 30 Quonset Huts at once, just the first 10 to start then expand as needed.
My estimates come in at $600,000 for 10 Acres of Land, $200,000 for Fencing & Gates, $250,000 for each of the Six Living Quarters Quonset Huts to be Built out and Furnished, $287,500 for each of the Four Activities Quonset Huts, $500,000 for the Road, $50,000 for Landscaping and $100,000 for Miscellaneous things for a Total of $4,100,000. These are just estimates from the research I have done. 40 People can be housed in each Quonset Hut for a total of 240 Total People in the first Six Huts. The Plan is that, the majority of the Residents staying there are only going to be there about 12 to 24 Months until they get back on their feet and find Jobs.