U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Sec. Ben Carson hit the First Coast this week.
On Monday, Carson joined U.S. Rep. John Rutherford, R-Fla., at a roundtable event in Jacksonville at Sulzbacher’s EnVision Center which helps the homeless.
“Public-private partnerships, like the Sulzbacher Center, are critical in our fight against homelessness,” said Rutherford. “By investing in our communities and providing individuals with the support they need to lead independent lives, Northeast Florida has been able to consistently reduce homelessness in the region. I am proud to work with Secretary Carson and my colleagues in Congress to ensure homeless individuals and families have the resources they need to find permanent housing and get back on their feet.”
Rutherford sits on the U.S. House Transportation, Housing and Urban Development (THUD) Appropriations Subcommittee and his office noted that the congressman backed the $12 billion included for HUD under the CARES Act, the $2.2 trillion federal stimulus that Congress and the White House agreed upon at the end of March.
“Years of collaboration among stakeholders in the region has produced encouraging results. Thanks in large part to organizations like the Sulzbacher Center, from 2009-2019, Northeast Florida saw an 82 percent reduction in homeless veterans, 46 percent reduction in homeless families, and 60 percent reduction in the chronically homeless,” the congressman’s office noted.
Reach Kevin Derby at kevin.derby@floridadaily.com.
