Economic Opportunity & Affordability
Economic Development
Those who know me well, know that economic opportunity is and has been the backbone of my platform for years. I believe that everyone should have the right to earn a fair wage and provide for their families on one income. I believe in homeownership as I am a Realtor/Broker by trade and have worked in the industry for over 20 years before becoming a Politician. With more than 30 years in the real estate industry, I know how critical it is to our communities for people to be economically stable, to be able to respectfully provide for their families, to be able to have affordable housing available to everyone, and to maybe eventually own a home.
I have worked on many initiatives to bring economic growth into this community but the one I am most proud of is FITCE (the Florida International Trade & Cultural Expo). I believed it was imperative to bring countries from all over the world to Ft. Lauderdale to improve our international trade and strengthen the economy in Broward County. This concept came from an idea I implemented when I was a Commissioner in Lauderhill; working with Sister Cities International to connect cities in other countries to cities here in South Florida to improve our economy through trade efforts.
I believe we must capitalize on the coastal uniqueness of our community as a Gateway to the Americas and utilize it to increase and improve our economy throughout Palm Beach and Broward County. I am a strong advocate for small, minority, and women-owned businesses as I believe they are the true backbone of our economy.
I am relentless, aggressive, and strategic in my plan that economic prosperity must include all the people of Broward County. My mission statement and goal as Mayor is to: Make Broward County a better place for all who live here by empowering our community, strengthening our households and businesses, creating policies that afford access to opportunities, and unifying everyone across racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds.
As your next Congressman, I will continue to push for economic prosperity for all of District 20, and when I go to Congress you can be confident I will bring the money back home to the people in my District to help them grow, but I need your support. To win the race for Congress we need money for signs, and to pay supporters to canvas and make calls.
Home Ownership
I believe in homeownership as I have served the community through my Realtor/Broker company. Having worked in the industry for over 30 years, I truly know how critical it is for our communities and people to be economically stable. Moreover, members in our communities are struggling, as today, housing insecurity and unaffordability are at an all-time high. Skyrocketed prices have made living a hassle for anyone to buy grocery products or take the occasional outing to the movies. This news affects a large part of the middle and lower class. We must be aware that these are some of the most troubling issues facing Americans.
When viewing this issue, I often ask the tough question of what is needed in my community so that we can greatly improve. I bought my first home at 22 years old and I can truthfully say, the housing market efficiency then is nowhere near our current housing market and where it needs to be. We should not embrace difficulty in finding a home. Those at the bottom and our youths need support, which is why the Federal Holness Housing Plan will seek to reintroduce the Federal housing voucher program once used in Broward County. This program will help those suffering from the current housing crisis by having the opportunity to fill out an application to receive federally funded temporary housing. With these housing vouchers assigned to members of the community, we will allocate rented privately-owned government housing. Moreover, I will impose that the government assistance program will also cover 50% of their rent to ensure that we can help our community during this existential housing crisis.
As your next Congressman, I will work to ensure we provide affordable housing for all people, where opportunities for homeownership are provided to foreseeable homeowners. I will also work with the communities I serve to expand the number of First Time Home-buyer Workshops, while expanding and enhancing participation in homeownership training/mentoring. I will work with local schools to encourage more homeownership discussions at the high school level, fostering and initiating opportunities with local municipalities so they can be successful. Moreover, I will also collaborate with government-owned and non-profit vacant property owners (those with unused properties) within the district and work to ensure they build a comprehensive plan for maintaining affordable housing opportunities.
Accordion Content
Those who know me well, know that economic opportunity is and has been the backbone of my platform for years. I believe that everyone should have the right to earn a fair wage and provide for their families on one income. I believe in homeownership as I am a Realtor/Broker by trade and have worked in the industry for over 20 years before becoming a Politician. With more than 30 years in the real estate industry, I know how critical it is to our communities for people to be economically stable, to be able to respectfully provide for their families, to be able to have affordable housing available to everyone, and to maybe eventually own a home.
I have worked on many initiatives to bring economic growth into this community but the one I am most proud of is FITCE (the Florida International Trade & Cultural Expo). I believed it was imperative to bring countries from all over the world to Ft. Lauderdale to improve our international trade and strengthen the economy in Broward County. This concept came from an idea I implemented when I was a Commissioner in Lauderhill; working with Sister Cities International to connect cities in other countries to cities here in South Florida to improve our economy through trade efforts.
I believe we must capitalize on the coastal uniqueness of our community as a Gateway to the Americas and utilize it to increase and improve our economy throughout Palm Beach and Broward County. I am a strong advocate for small, minority, and women-owned businesses as I believe they are the true backbone of our economy.
I am relentless, aggressive, and strategic in my plan that economic prosperity must include all the people of Broward County. My mission statement and goal as Mayor is to: Make Broward County a better place for all who live here by empowering our community, strengthening our households and businesses, creating policies that afford access to opportunities, and unifying everyone across racial, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds.
As your next Congressman, I will continue to push for economic prosperity for all of District 20, and when I go to Congress you can be confident I will bring the money back home to the people in my District to help them grow, but I need your support. To win the race for Congress we need money for signs, and to pay supporters to canvas and make calls.
I believe in homeownership as I have served the community through my Realtor/Broker company. Having worked in the industry for over 30 years, I truly know how critical it is for our communities and people to be economically stable. Moreover, members in our communities are struggling, as today, housing insecurity and unaffordability are at an all-time high. Skyrocketed prices have made living a hassle for anyone to buy grocery products or take the occasional outing to the movies. This news affects a large part of the middle and lower class. We must be aware that these are some of the most troubling issues facing Americans.
When viewing this issue, I often ask the tough question of what is needed in my community so that we can greatly improve. I bought my first home at 22 years old and I can truthfully say, the housing market efficiency then is nowhere near our current housing market and where it needs to be. We should not embrace difficulty in finding a home. Those at the bottom and our youths need support, which is why the Federal Holness Housing Plan will seek to reintroduce the Federal housing voucher program once used in Broward County. This program will help those suffering from the current housing crisis by having the opportunity to fill out an application to receive federally funded temporary housing. With these housing vouchers assigned to members of the community, we will allocate rented privately-owned government housing. Moreover, I will impose that the government assistance program will also cover 50% of their rent to ensure that we can help our community during this existential housing crisis.
As your next Congressman, I will work to ensure we provide affordable housing for all people, where opportunities for homeownership are provided to foreseeable homeowners. I will also work with the communities I serve to expand the number of First Time Home-buyer Workshops, while expanding and enhancing participation in homeownership training/mentoring. I will work with local schools to encourage more homeownership discussions at the high school level, fostering and initiating opportunities with local municipalities so they can be successful. Moreover, I will also collaborate with government-owned and non-profit vacant property owners (those with unused properties) within the district and work to ensure they build a comprehensive plan for maintaining affordable housing opportunities.
As an immigrant of Jamaica, I understand too well the effects of poverty. For some, it continues to be a cycle that we must work on breaking down. We need to help provide opportunities for people that are less fortunate and help level the playing field for those who want to grow and build economic strength for their families. I led the effort in the community to increase the living wage for our airport workers in Broward County because I believe that everyone should have the right to a fair living wage. It took over 4 years to finally get it done, but I never gave up, continued the fight, and we prevailed.
However, we also need to recognize we have a real problem with homelessness in this country. Please understand this; it’s not just related to poverty, but mental illness. We have over 44% of the US homeless in Florida today, and many of those that are currently incarcerated are there with mental health issues. We need to work together with our local communities to address the mental health needs and provide mental health care to those people who can be treated and can live a more productive life. We need to partner with our veteran groups and work together to improve mental health care for our veterans. Over 70% of our veterans are homeless today and deserve to be provided programs to help them live their lives with dignity.
We continue to experience a significantly higher rate of poverty within the black communities today as well, and with more and more of those same people consistently being incarcerated. To break the cycle of poverty and crime we need to promote civil citation laws that will help our youth get a fair chance at changing the cycle. Instead of being arrested multiple times for minor crimes which leads to a lack of education and heightened crime rates, we need to work with our local communities to ensure these kids go through a program that helps them recover when they are young to become productive members of society that add to the economic strength of our communities, not tear it down.
I have been a strong advocate for addressing the many needs of the people within the district as the Commissioner and Broward County Mayor and I believe I have the experience needed to face the challenges, resistance, and struggles we face in Washington, DC today. I have successfully worked to improve our neighborhoods and worked to ensure that County services are equally distributed. My goal is that all residents of District 20 that I will serve are heard, respected and their concerns are properly addressed and you can be assured I will push to improve the economy for all those living in my District.
