City Council member wants St. Pete to own mixed-income housing

For rent sign / renters / rental vouchers housing vouchers housing — A "For Rent" sign is displayed along a neighborhood street (AP Photo/Gerry Broome)

At least two bills were passed during the 2023 Florida Legislative session that impact tenants. One is HB 1417 — a preemption bill — that forbids local municipalities from enacting local protections for renters or regulations that exceed those granted by state law. Another is HB 133, which allows landlords to charge nonrefundable monthly fees instead of a one-time, refundable security deposit.

We spoke with St. Petersburg City Council member Richie Floyd to get an update about these bills and about affordable housing and tenants’ rights. Floyd is a former teacher and union activist.

St. Pete has taken steps in the past to stop discrimination against renters who rely on government assistance, including vouchers.

Listen to the full show here. Video is below

Floyd tells WMNF he will introduce a motion for city-owned mixed-income housing

“I’m actually putting in a new business item, as we speak, in the next couple of weeks that you’ll be able to see to talk about municipal bonding to try to do city-owned mixed-income housing.

“Because ultimately, I think relying on the private sector and people who are trying to create a profit off of our housing is not going to solve our problem. They’re out to make money. They’re not out to house people.

“And so I’m trying to get a conversation started about building housing for human need, doing it mixed-income, high quality, so that we can get everyone in our city house we have a shortage for everyone.

“And that’ll come up in the next couple of weeks. it’ll just get sent to committee. And so you’ll be able to see those couple of things pretty soon.”