Guest Opinion
Have you ever noticed that when it comes to politicians, a lot of times whatâs offered are Band-Aid solutions â something that sounds good, appeases some donors and stakeholders, yet doesnât actually solve the problem. In other words, this is how Johnson City has approached addressing its homeless population. This is why people hate politics.
Kate Craig
For me, politics has always been about people. Not power. Not advancing a personal power grab or the ability to influence. Itâs about people. All people.
After all, there are just some hurdles out there, that without the support of a community, will break us. I learned this after my motorcycle accident in 2013. Despite all of my own efforts, I needed a community to keep me afloat. I had no bootstraps I could use to pull myself up. In fact, I keep my Virginia EBT card from this time above my desk to remind me why I do this work. I could easily have been homeless during this time.
Prompting uncertainty about next steps, a motion to rezone 10 parcels in the Mountain Home neighborhood failed on a 2-2 vote by the Johnson City Commission on Thursday.
A proposal to rezone 10 parcels in and around the Mountain Home neighborhood failed on a 2-2 vote during a City Commission meeting on July 1. An 11th property, marked with the red X, was removed before the vote on Thursday.
Itâs unclear whether the request, which was initiated by city staff, will appear in front of the City Commission again and what form it will take if it does.
The proposal, which has been gradually scaled back since staff brought a larger version to commissioners in January, was intended to eliminate outdated industrial zoning near Founders Park and create the potential for small-scale development and reinvestment on certain properties in the neighborhood.
Although he said a proposal to create an equity board in Johnson City appears unlikely to get traction, Mayor Joe Wise expects conversations will occur with a newly formed organization
The Johnson City Commission unanimously approved Johnson City’s “extremely large” fiscal year budget of $302 million on first reading Thursday. Out of that $302 million, there’s probably $40-50 million worth