Key Points
- Alachua County allocated $200,000 in emergency food assistance, with $100,000 for fresh foods at six community centers and $100,000 to Bread of the Mighty food bank.
- The Board of County Commissioners referred the Yes, In God's Backyard housing program for religious properties to the Affordable Housing Advisory Committee for local standards.
Alachua County amended its policies Tuesday for the use of $200,000 in emergency food assistance issued in November.
Half of the money went to Bread of the Mighty, and CEO and President Patrick Dodds told the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) that it should receive all the purchased food by the end of next week. He said the first order of $42,000 bought 44,000 pounds of food.
Bread of the Mighty is distributing the boxed food through its normal distributions, and Dodds said the food bank will also set up its own distributions if needed.
The other $100,000 went to fresh foods for six community resource centers. Each center has purchased food through Frog Song Organics, a farm in Hawthorne. County staff said $18,000 has been spent to buy around 4,450 pounds of food.
The BOCC expanded the use of those funds to also purchase freezers to keep the food.
Another $6,000 went to the Grove Street Farmers Market and High Springs Farmers Market. The money was originally intended for SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) recipients to buy fresh produce.
However, county staff said local governments are being prevented from providing extra aid to SNAP recipients. Instead, the BOCC voted to expand the definition to all food-insecure families who go to the farmers markets. So far, those farmers markets have spent $410 of the allocated funds.
County staff also asked if the programs should continue now that SNAP benefits have been restored. The BOCC said yes.
“Because a lot of folks are already behind, and this will allow them to have that extra food security until they get a little bit caught back up,” Commissioner Mary Alford said.
At Tuesday’s policy meeting, the BOCC also voted to refer the new Yes, In God’s Backyard program to the Affordable Housing Advisory Committee. The program, approved by the state through the Live Local Act, opens a door for religious institutions to build housing and affordable housing on their properties.
The advisory board will discuss standards for the housing approved through the program, and the BOCC will then take the recommendations and set local standards.