JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Interfaith Coalition for Action, Reconciliation and Empowerment (ICARE), which consists of 38 faith congregations, gathered Monday for the annual Nehemiah Action Assembly.
Among the community, other faith leaders and Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters, Mayor Donna Deegan sat as a guest in the front row of the Abyssinia Missionary Baptist Church on Jacksonville’s northside.
The group praised Waters for the reduced murder rate and asked Deegan to commit to creating an affordable housing trust to address housing issues in the city.
ICARE said the affordable housing crisis has been devastating for families in Jacksonville, especially those who make 50% or less of the area’s median income — such as bus drivers, nursing assistants, security guards, janitors, housekeepers, seniors living on a fixed income and single-income families.
Deegan doubled down on her fight to provide affordable housing options, committing to the trust fund.
Deegan spoke to the audience, mentioning how Jacksonville had a high quality of life and a lower cost of living compared to other cities.
RELATED: A third of all evictions in Jacksonville happen in just 100 buildings, new data shows
“The United Way of Northeast Florida’s latest ALICE report revealed that 39% of families across our community are struggling,” Deegan said. “Meanwhile, Jacksonville’s housing inventory is struggling to keep pace with our fast growth. We’re short by more than 40,000 affordable housing units, and the Jacksonville Housing Authority’s waiting list for low-income housing has more than 27,000 people on it. It has a five-year wait and is currently closed.”
Reverend Amber Kearney, a team leader with ICARE, said housing was the top issue this year for all 38 congregations.
“People are telling us that they’ve had to move in with their elderly families, even if they have a master’s degree. They have a job that should be able to afford housing, and they’re not getting those resources,” Kearney said.
While Deegan’s administration has invested money into affordable housing, she said her office ran into roadblocks with the city council reducing the funding that was committed to, but they continue to work towards a solution.
“Our city is a consolidated government, so ours can’t look exactly like what some of the other cities look like. What it needs is a dedicated funding source that’s the most important thing. We will work with ICARE to create a trust fund that works for our community,” Deegan said.
Kearney said more affordable housing means a better Jacksonville.
“For us, having affordable housing that’s actually affordable for the people in Jacksonville means that there’s less poverty. You know, crime goes down, homelessness goes down and just overall better for the whole city,” Kearney said.
Recognizing the reduction in the city’s murder rate
ICARE also honored Sheriff T.K. Waters Monday night for his work in lowering the murder rate by 50% from 2023 to 2024.
“This type of reduction has not happened in Jacksonville in at least two decades; it means that 60 less people lost their lives last year,” said Geneva Pittman, a member of ICARE.
ICARE and Sheriff Waters haven’t always seen eye to eye, but he was at the assembly Monday night and shared that fighting gun violence is personal to him. He explained that reducing the murder rate is a long process and he feels even one murder is too many.
“We are going to be very hard, very driven, on putting people away that want to hurt you want to hurt our young people in our community, because it’s our responsibility,” said Sheriff Waters.
Reverend Kearney shared that Sheriff Waters implementing the Gun Violence Intervention program brought community partners together with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.
“They give them a one time opportunity to leave the gang lifestyle and come and be able to contribute meaningfully in society,” Kearney explained. “That means that we have fewer people that don’t make it to their 30th birthday because we’ve seen the demographics. It’s usually young men around, you know, in their 20s and 30s, and we don’t want that, we want a city that’s safe for everyone.”
District 7 Councilman Jimmy Peluso also praised the work the Sheriff has done to lower the murder rate, but he says there’s still work to be done with public safety.
“We’re making sure that JSO gets the resources they need, but we also need to make sure that we’re putting more resources into our parks and after school activities,” said Peluso. “If we give a kid a baseball bat when they’re 13, they’re not going to take a gun. So we need to make sure that we have resources and and we’re putting funding into after school activities that are productive.”
Reverend Kearney encourages people to get involved in their communities to make a positive difference.
“If you’re feeling overwhelmed by national politics, you know, find a place in your city that you can do good wherever you’re at,” said Kearney. “And I think that gives me hope, and I hope that that brings hope to people that are maybe feeling discouraged right now.”
