Latrelle Joy Talks Approval For Bond Proposal & Homelessness

Wednesday on Sunrise Lubbock with Dave King and Tom Collins, Lubbock City Councilwoman Latrelle Joy joined Dave and Tom to talk about the approval to have a vote on the street bond, homelessness in Lubbock, the city budget and the tax rate, water conservation and water towers, and more.

The Councilwoman started the conversation by saying that the city council had several items to cover in yesterday's meeting, but the biggest topic was the approval of the city secretary giving the notice of the bond election that would give repairs to many streets in Lubbock. This bond is the result of the recommendations made by the Future Needs Committee consisting of Jeff Griffith, Sheila Patterson Harris, and Latrelle Joy. They drove every street in Lubbock, and determined which ones, from each district, they felt needed critical care. The affected streets would include Erskine from Ave S to I-27, finishing the work on 34th street, 82nd from I-27 to MLK, finishing work on 114th, Milwaukee, MLK from the Loop to 82nd, University from 98th to 114th, 98th from Upland to Alcove, Upland from 4th to 19th, and Broadway street. The project would cost around $174 million dollars.

Joy was also asked about downtown homelessness in Lubbock. The Councilwoman said that homeless people are not just downtown, but all around Lubbock. They just tend to move downtown as there is food distribution by services like Carpenter's Church, Open Door, First Methodist, Grace Campus, and the Salvation Army. When asked what the homeless numbers are looking like right now, Latrelle explained that the number of homeless we have may be higher than they were about 10 to 15 years ago, but are typically lower compared to the past several years. She clarifies, however, that that does not mean that there is not still an issue. She went on to explain that there is a group working independently on a solution, or more accurately a better way of doing things, that could end up in a public-private partnership to help fight homelessness. But in the end, there are some people that choose to be homeless no matter the circumstances.

Yet another topic discussed concerned the city budget. Joy clarified that while the budget itself wasn't discussed last night, they did discuss how the tax rate would be affected. It was confirmed last night that the tax rate would be 52.3230 cents per 100 for the next year, which is a bit less when compared to last year. There are several factors that played into this, including resolutions of protests of tax valuations, as well as changes in exemptions.

Listen to the full interview with City Councilwoman Latrelle Joy in the audio above.

Sunrise Lubbock with Dave King and Tom Collins airs weekday mornings live, from 6:00 AM to 8:30 AM on News/Talk 95.1 FM and 790 AM KFYO, online at KFYO.com, & on the free KFYO app.