Success! Gainesville Meal Limit On the Way to Change

by Rich Lombino & Elizabeth Lombino · 2011-05-02 00:01:00 UTC
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It has taken some time, but after close to 8,000 of you signed the petition, Gainesville officials are finally listening!

As we have written, Gainesville officials have enforced a meal limit ordinance to area soup kitchens. The rule states that soup kitchens can provide meals to only 130 people each day. If you are number 131, you do not eat that day. No exceptions.

We also wrote that Kent Vann, Executive Director of the St. Francis House soup kitchen at the heart of this debate, recently made an appeal to officials. His goal was to change the wording of the ordinance to reflect a limit on the time the soup kitchen can serve food, not a limit on number of people.

It looks like Mr. Vann's creative activism has proven successful!

The Gainesville City Plan Board recently voted unanimously to change the limit to reflect Mr. Vann's suggestion of a 3-hour time limit. This recommendation will then go to the City Commission in the coming weeks. They will then decide if the changes are to be made. This is certainly a large step toward victory. It shows that some city officials are listening and responding to the pressure of activists.

In addition, many activists involved in this battle feel any ordinance or meal limit is outright inhumane and unnecessary. They are continuing the fight to remove any and all limits. They continue to put pressure on other influential city residents who have supported the meal limit.

The fight will continue. This move forward is big news. Yet, as many activists know quite well, the fighting does not stop until all changes are made. The Gainesville City Commission has shown little empathy for the most vulnerable city residents. There is the possibility that they will not agree to this change.

Please continue to support this important fight by signing the petition. And if you have already signed, please continue to share with your network! Thank you to all who have provided support in this fight!

Photo Credit: Coalition to End the Meal Limit

Rich Lombino & Elizabeth Lombino are a husband and wife team dedicated to effecting social change.

RELATED PETITION

Demand City of Gainesville, FL to Feed ALL Who are Hungry!
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