Nikki Gaskin-Capehart, president of the Pinellas County Urban League, said she has never seen such a demand for emergency services in her three years of leading the organization. All images: Congresswoman Kathy Castor’s office.
Federal policies and the war in Iran have exacerbated affordability issues, which are now a top-of-mind concern for people from all walks of life.
As of Wednesday morning, the average price for gas in Tampa Bay was $4.16 per gallon. Most tenants still pay over $2,000 in monthly rent, and homeownership remains an elusive dream for many residents.
Exorbitant food and energy costs increased by nearly 3% year-over-year in March. U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor wanted to hear the personal stories behind the statistics before returning to the nation’s capital to advocate on behalf of exasperated constituents.
Castor hosted the People’s Hearing on High Prices on April 9 at St. Petersburg College’s Midtown Center. The event followed a marathon tour of Tampa Bay as the congresswoman announced $17.32 million in Community Project Funding awards for 13 initiatives.
“I know it is so expensive and rough out there these days,” Castor said after the event. “That’s why I’ve been so focused during the spring work period here at home to deliver investments to help lower the cost of living.”
Castor added that she is “doing everything in my power to help bring a little bit of relief around here.” She will also “fight to put guardrails around the Trump administration’s costly and reckless agenda.”
The president’s “war of choice” is costing the nation billions of dollars weekly, Castor noted. She believes that money should instead be spent supporting communities. “You deserve so much better.”
Here are some comments, slightly edited for clarity and brevity, from residents who spoke at the People’s Hearing on High Prices:
Jabaar Edmond, co-founder of Community Development and Training Center, said affordability issues are no longer relegated to typically impoverished neighborhoods. The problem has spread to the suburbs and downtown condominiums, he added, and it is now common to see luxury vehicles waiting in line at food pantries.
“Desperate people do desperate things,” Edmond warned. “And I’m seeing more people become desperate.”
Dr. Nichole Pena-Miller, senior director of financial security for United Way Suncoast, said it is nearly impossible for people to thrive when they are “struggling just to survive.” She noted that 46% of all Tampa Bay residents “don’t make enough to make ends meet.”
“In Pinellas County, a family of four with two children in child care needs to make over $108,000 a year to afford basic necessities,” Pena-Miller said.
Maureen Cacioppo, owner of Florida Pure Sea Salt, said tariffs have increased the cost of key materials that small businesses rely on for packaging and shipping. “At the same time, gas prices have created a ripple effect across everything that we do.”
“Small businesses like mine don’t have the margins to absorb constant increases,” Cacioppo continued. “But we do have the ability to create jobs, strengthen local economies, and contribute to something bigger.”
Nikki Gaskin-Capehart, president of the Pinellas County Urban League, said she has never seen such a demand for emergency services in her three years of leading the organization. She also noted the term “affordability crisis” is much more than a political buzzword.
“This is a very heavy time in our community,” Gaskin-Capehart said. “We know that people are at their wits’ end.”
St. Pete resident Aleyah Conway said she, like many younger adults, thought that graduating from college and doing “all the right things” would enable her to buy a home. Promises of financial security for her and her family remain unfulfilled.
“It just isn’t happening,” said Conway, who now works two jobs. “I’m very concerned about what this means for the future of my children.”
Castor told the speakers that their emotional stories reinvigorated her to “speak truth to power” in Washington, D.C. She also pledged that the ongoing dialogue would continue “until we change things.”
“It does not have to be this hard in the United States of America,” Castor said. “It simply does not.”
U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor (foreground) hugs St. Pete resident Michelle Mastrototaro, who emotionally described how she struggles to afford her child’s healthcare, at the People’s Hearing on High Prices.
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