In Bradenton and around the globe, we all have the power to change our piece of the world | Opinion

“In every community, there is work to be done. In every nation, there are wounds to heal. In every heart, there is the power to do it. “ – Marianne Williamson

I am re-reading “A Return to Love,” by Marianne Williamson. I enjoy her writing, as she often talks about the power of individuals to transform the things around them — our relationships, our lives, our homes, our communities.

As your District 4 county commissioner, I believe my role is to help transform our corner of the universe to improve the lives of our residents and businesses now and for generations to come. And, as Williamson writes, we all have the power to do it.

I met with some of the largest landlords last week in south county and asked for their partnership to clean up some of the neighborhoods. Some neighborhoods are tired and in decline. One of the things I asked of the landlords is to have the residents park their cars in the driveway or on the street, but not in the front yard on the grass blocking the view of the home or across the sidewalks. Everyone around the table agreed that this would be nice and most even had standards in their rental agreement stating such, but most also threw up their hands in defeat, saying they have no control over the people they rent to.

Some homes in my district don’t even have a driveway, so for them there is no choice. I offered my time and labor to help install driveways, but I don’t think there is an interest to do so. In defense of the landlords, they explained that they face a constant cycle of repairing and rehabilitating a unit in order to rent it, only to have tenants tear it up again. They explain the people they rent to are too busy taking care of basic needs to care about where to park their cars. I get that.

So what do we do? We partner together and look for ways to help our district. How do we tackle the parking problem and other issues? One small step at a time. What if we can’t find an answer? Then we keep looking.

We are all in agreement that it would help our neighborhoods if we can help one homeowner at a time solve the parking problem. We have many problems like this example that will take perseverance, understanding, education, and creativity to solve. And, as each one is solved, our neighborhoods become stronger. Lifting up each area helps with larger issues too, like crime reduction, increased public safety for our children, and increased property values for the landlords.

This week I will go on a tour of rental properties in two communities with landlords. We will be working together and I appreciate the collaboration. We can all benefit by helping each other, our community’s families, and our neighborhoods; and we have the power to do it. We just need the will and drive to continue forward when faced with problems that are hard to solve.

Misty Servia is the Manatee County Commissioner representing District 4 in South Manatee. You can reach her at misty.servia@mymanatee.org