This week’s Political Party with Adam Smith focuses on a controversial racial equity and economic development initiative to require publicly subsidized St Petersburg development projects to deliver specific benefits to the local community.
City Council members last week gave the Community Benefits Agreement proposal a chilly and skeptical reception, questioning whether it was rushed and too broad and would discourage development in the city. So we spoke to one of the most prominent advocates for the proposal, Gypsy Gallardo, CEO of One Community St. Pete, who has spent decades working to grow the economy and opportunity for African Americans in south St. Peterburg. She was taken aback by some of the feedback from council members, even as she welcomed the opportunity to answer their questions and concerns.
