GAINESVILLE, FL (352today.com) – In his latest open door session on Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, Gainesville Mayor Harvey Ward expressed his views on key issues affecting the city – downtown parking fees, homelessness, and school threats – presenting his vision for the future.
Downtown Parking Fees
The City of Gainesville has established a new parking enforcement in Gainesville’s downtown area. The mayor says he’s reached out to “a number of mayors” nationwide to reference what they’ve done regarding their parking issues.
Ward acknowledges parking difficulties and plans to gauge public reaction to new rates.
“I think the proper way to do it is to evaluate after a few months, so that way we’ll have all of the data to decide if it’s worth it or not worth it and adjust accordingly,” says Ward. “I’m not saying that what we’re doing is absolutely perfect. I’m saying that we need to get used to it to know how good it is.”
Ward says he plans to reinvest parking revenue into downtown marketing for improvement and growth.
Homelessness
On October 1, House Bill 1365 will go into effect as per the Florida Senate, banning homeless people from camping in public areas.
Ward reiterates that the bill won’t apply in Gainesville, but vows to collaborate with city’s homeless services. He adds that the bill is directed towards the counties in Florida that don’t offer any homeless services
Ward says he spoke with State Rep. Sam Garrison, the bill’s sponsor, offering expertise in homeless services in Gainesville and suggesting how the city’s experience could be beneficial.
Ward mentions that maintaining homeless encampments poses financial problems, and says the city tried to operate an encampment around GRACE Marketplace but was not successful.
“What I learned from that is if you’re going to do that, it’s very expensive to do it in a safe and positive way,” says Ward. “It was way more expensive than what we expected.”
Regardless, Ward says he believes the City of Gainesville is doing more than most of the cities in America when it comes to homelessness. Earlier this month, the city reached an agreement with the aforementioned GRACE Marketplace, agreeing on a budget of $1.5 million for the marketplace to continue providing social services for the homeless.
School Threats
On Sept. 17, 2024, Buchholz High School faced a threat now deemed “non-credible” by the FBI. Ward says he believes the problem with youth violence needs to be squashed at the source.
“Local organizations who go into neighborhoods and talk with kids and help them turn away from violence is critical,” says Ward.
As far as the city’s efforts, Ward says they have been working closely with community groups to help kids understand that violence is not the right answer.
“If violence is your answer, particularly gun violence, then your future’s not bright,” spoke Ward. “We want kids to find other avenues.”
Ward says the city has invested heavily in the One Nation, One Project program as well as athletic programs to open up the opportunity for the youth to move away from violence and toward more positive forms of expression.
Ward adds that parenting is hard, and that making sure your child is at the right schools can be stressful.
“In a world where so many people are armed, and where you know gun violence is a threat, the anxiety is off the charts for those parents,” he says. “Myself included.”
New Chief of Police Appointment
The City of Gainesville recently announced that interim police chief Nelson Moya will be assuming the position of Chief of Police. Monday was his first official day as chief of the Gainesville Police Department (GPD). Moya has earned support from the mayor, with the two having worked with each other for the past few months.
“I have tremendous confidence in Nelson Moya,” said Ward. “We did a national search for assistant chief last year, and he was at the top of that list.”
Ward says the one issue that Moya has dug into during his time as interim is making sure everyone in the department is “on top of the mission of the department.” He says Moya is looking to tackle gun violence as a “number one” priority.