ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Demonstrators in St. Petersburg gathered at the steps of city hall to, once again, rally for city leaders to declare a housing state of emergency.
“I can’t find anything,” said Camille Law, who spoke at the protest. “I am homeless and couch surfing right now.”
Law says she left her old apartment about four months ago, and the rent at that property has already gone up $800 since she moved out.
Day by day, more renters are starting to have the same trouble finding housing that’s safe and affordable.
“People are being forced out of their homes, forced out of their neighborhoods,” said Aaron Dietrich from the People’s Council of St. Petersburg. “The impact of that to a family, to a neighborhood…we’re seeing the pain of a city.”
Last week, the city’s Housing, Land Use and Transportation Committee had the opportunity to push forward with a motion to declare a housing emergency, which would have been a first step at getting a vote to enact rent control. But, the motion failed, with committee members voicing concerns that it was too risky under Florida law and may drive away developers.
Protestors say that’s simply not acceptable.
“What we’re prepared to do is escalate now to an occupation in a tent city if our demands are not met,” Dietrich said. “We’ve had more than 30 people sign up tonight saying that they’re willing to put their bodies on the line to stand in the way, and not to move until their demands are met.”
Organizers of the protest say they’ll be speaking with the people who have signed up to participate in the tent city demonstration to decide where exactly it will take place.
They say they hope elected leaders are listening.
Last week, St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch called affordable housing a pressing issue that demands solutions.