Manatee Commissioner Bellamy ignites community engagement in Bradenton town hall
Manatee County Commissioner Reggie Bellamy kept a yearlong promise to his constituents when he held his first-ever town hall meeting Thursday evening.
More than 50 residents gathered at the Pathways Christian Church to discuss several pressing issues involving Bellamy’s district, which encompasses parts of Palmetto, Ellenton and Bradenton. The town hall meeting comes almost exactly a year after Bellamy was sworn in as a commissioner.
“I’m excited to see you all. I want to open up my ears and arms to improve our community,” he told the crowd. “We’re going to find ways to unite, so we can make sure we have a powerful explosion and get things done.”
Kicking off the conversation, Bellamy walked attendees through the basics of how Manatee County Government works and what his personal duties are. He pointed out that he serves as an advocate for residents in his district but that at-large commissioners Carol Whitmore and Betsy Benac are also elected officials that fight for everyone in the room.
Bellamy’s presentation and discussion revolved around some of the most pressing issues for residents in his district, including public safety, the upcoming 2020 Census and the Bradenton-Palmetto Connector Study. Jennifer Marshall, the administrator of the Florida Department of Transportation’s District 1 Project Development and Environmental study department also attended the session to address concerns.
Bradenton-Palmetto Connector Study
Speakers said they were worried about the impact a new bridge over the Manatee River might have on homes and business, especially in minority communities.
“Usually they come through black neighborhoods and tear it up and make it bad for those areas,” said Arthur Huggins. “Usually you’ve got the homeless sitting up under bridges and the businesses just go bad, and of course the depreciation of property and everything else.”
While FDOT is looking at every possible option, Marshall said the agency is aware of local sensitivities and has launched a “socio-cultural evaluation” on the project to mitigate and minimize negative impacts.
“There’s not a particularly awesome corridor. We’ll have to balance it because they each have negative aspects,” Marshall said, referring to the six corridors being examined as alternative routes over the Manatee River.
“We recognize that there are historically African American neighborhoods both north and south of the river and we want to make sure we’re doing additional due diligence to make sure we’re not causing adverse impact to those areas,” she added.
The most important thing concerned residents can do is speak up, Bellamy said.
“We don’t need to sit back and start murmuring. We need to stand up and when it’s time to come to a town hall meeting or your church is discussing it or the NAACP, or wherever it is, put your thoughts down and have that information documented,” Bellamy urged.
“We want to make sure we get as much information as we possibly can because they want to make an informed decision,” he continued. “They want to make sure they minimize economic impact, but they have to know where stand on a certain area.”
Lincoln Park Pool
Perhaps the most heated conversation centered around a long-delayed joint project between Manatee and the city of Palmetto — the Lincoln Park Pool. Guests told Bellamy they were tired of the completion date being pushed back and asked him to support the best pool possible.
Members of the Palmetto High School swim team attended the meeting to speak in support of a competition pool that’s large enough to host swim meets and recreational swimmers at the same time. Others argued that the part of the county north of the Manatee River is overdue for a pool.
But the pool is closer to completion than ever before, Bellamy responded. He told the audience that it was in everyone’s best interest to terminate the plan and restart from scratch in order to put more money and better amenities toward the pool’s design.
“I’m excited where we are right now because we want to make sure that we get that pool north of the river, but we did not have a vision,” Bellamy said.
Manatee and Palmetto officials are set to host a joint meeting to discuss the next steps on the Lincoln Pool project at 1:30 p.m. Dec. 17 at the Bradenton Area Convention Center, 1 Haben Blvd., Palmetto.
Inclusive Manatee
County staff also explained the idea behind Inclusive Manatee, an upcoming pilot program meant to address unemployment in Samoset, where unemployment is more than three times higher than the county average.
“We’re going to begin with a very basic step of connecting people to jobs but also look at ways that we can eliminate barriers to unemployment,” said Che Barnett, a community redevelopment coordinator with the county’s Redevelopment and Economic Opportunity department. “Many people don’t have transportation. Daycare is a really big issue for some people. There’s medical needs. For some people, there’s just a huge, huge burden.”
Residents in the unincorporated areas of Samoset are eligible for the program. County staff expect to release more information in January.
Heading into 2020, Bellamy highlighted the importance of responding to the Census. He acknowledged that residents may be wary to open up their doors and respond to the federal government but stressed the importance of an accurate count.
“That’s where the money comes from — the federal and state dollars,” said Bellamy.
Bellamy hopes to host another town hall in the Palmetto area early next year.
