The St. Petersburg based activist group Agenda 2010 met Saturday afternoon for part two of the City Policy Convention in which proposals concerning five different policy areas were finalized so they can be brought before the St. Petersburg City Council.
Five different workshop sessions were dedicated to each different policy area including health, minority business, youth development, public safety and housing. The goal for the workshop was to finalize the proposals so that they may be brought before the city council.
“We cannot expect this to be the end of the road,” said Gypsy Gallardo founder of Agenda 2010 and publisher of Power Broker Magazine, about the workshop sessions. The group has explored various ways to present their ideas to the city council, including briefing meetings with the Mayor and a presentation of all proposals at a city council meeting.
Each workshop session saw different successes. The youth development session finalized their goals, including the creation of a city-wide youth council and task force, and created vision and mission statements. The youth development group wants to “empower community youth and their families to assure comprehensive service and developmental environment at all levels of the St. Petersburg community toward the end of producing leaders with competitive skills, strong personal image, and responsible community membership.” The group wants to see the potential youth council as inclusive, and should be representative of every section of the city. They request a line item in the city budget that will fund activities of the youth council, and that city staff be assigned to aid the youth council alongside the task force. Currently there is a petition sponsored by council member Steve Kornell that calls for a youth council.
The housing session found that the focus is multi-issue and not solely based on one goal. Many different issues affect housing in the city, including veterans’ issues, seniors, first time home owners, mobile homes, and ex-offenders. The housing group hopes to partner with the city to have a housing convention.
Agenda 2010, which has been active since the 2009 St. Petersburg city elections, is “co-sponsored by more than 20 organizations working together to increase black voter participation and to… making progress in 10 critical policy areas,” according to a handout given at yesterday’s policy convention. The group conducted a 13 page questionnaire last year in which 11 of the 12 candidates for St. Petersburg city council responded. The group is committed to holding those elected accountable for the promises they made to the community.
Visit the Agenda 2010 website here.
