Pride Center Misleading LGBT Community About Senior Housing (Fort Lauderdale, Wilton Manors: section 8, apartment)

[HotandHumid]

The LGBT Pride Center located on Dixie Highway south of 26th Street is currently in the process of working with a developer to build affordable senior housing on it's property that was purchased and is maintained primarily with donations from members of the LGBT community.

A recent article in one of the local Gay publications stated that the new housing will provide support services for LGBT seniors in the apartment building to be built that will house 48 seniors.

The catch is that Broward County states in it's Human Rights Ordinance that no one can discriminate in housing in Broward County based on sexual orientation and sexual orientation is defined in the ordinance as being or being perceived to be heterosexual, homosexual or bisexual, which means that the Pride Center will have to accept applications and admit to the housing eligible seniors of all sexual orientations, not just LGBT seniors.

This senior housing that is being spun by the administration of the Pride Center as seeming to be for LGBT seniors when it states it will have support services in the building for LGBT seniors comes on the heels of a large expanse of property having been developed into a children's playground at the Pride Center, although the majority of LGBT people in the Fort Lauderdale area don't have children and no significant number of the participants in support groups held at the Pride Center for persons with drug, alcohol and sexual addiction issues have children.

It seems to be anyone's guess why the current CEO of the Pride Center, who says he is Gay, would work with a company to use donated money to purchase playground equipment from a playground equipment company for the children's playground at the Pride Center and then work with a developer to build senior housing on LGBT purchased land that can't legally house only LGBT seniors.

[blueherons]

You realize sexual orientation is not a protected status?

You realize that Federal Law supercedes State Law or city ordinance?

[independent man]

Originally Posted by blueherons

You realize sexual orientation is not a protected status?

You realize that Federal Law supercedes State Law or city ordinance?

State & Local discrimination laws and ordinances supersede federal law if they expand rather than reduce non-discrimination protection within their jurisdictions. Of course, the federal judiciary is the final decider regarding the constitutionality of any law.

[HotandHumid]

Originally Posted by blueherons

You realize sexual orientation is not a protected status?

You realize that Federal Law supercedes State Law or city ordinance?

Sexual orientation is a protected status in Broward County. The Human Rights Ordinance here defines sexual orientation, "as being or being preceived as heterosexual, homosexual or bisexual."

The Federal government doesn't currently address issues of sexual orientation in housing or employment and has left that issue up to local municipalities and only intercedes to make a ruling if someone files a case in federal court.

You can look up the ordinance on the Internet.

[HotandHumid]

If you want to see an example of local government in action in Wilton Manors as it approved the building of the new senior housing building at the Pride Center , drive down Dixie Highway south of Five Points to view how the new affordable (not restricted income or section 8) senior housing building being constructed at the Pride Center that resulted in large old shade trees being cut down that can't be replaced because the building has been built right up to the sidewalk and over the land the trees were growing on, even though there was more than ample space at the back of the property with no trees on it where the building could have been built.

Taxpayers in Wilton Manors will most likely have to end up paying for traffic lights being installed on Dixie Highway at the entrance to the Pride Center now that the building will have at least 45 new tenants when completed, and because the building was built on a curve in Dixie Highway and those driving out of the driveway at the very busy Poverello food bank and thrift store can't see the oncoming traffic traveling north on Dixie Highway because the new building blocks the view of motor vehicles traveling on it, another traffic light will most likely have to be installed at the driveway there also.

I hope it's not going to be business as usual in Wilton Manors such as when nothing much of anything was done after several pedestrians were killed crossing Wilton Drive. It took a big protest outside of City Hall in Wilton Manors before anything was done to increase safety for pedestrians on Wilton Drive.

Interesting that when people brought up the issue of the large old shade trees being cut down at a meeting at the Pride Center, the director stated that those things could be bought at Home Depot.

I had emailed the director a couple of times during the planning stages in regard to asking why he was having the senior building built on a busy street right next to Poverello's busy driveway with so much expense involved in cutting down the trees, one a Banyon that must have been close to one hundred years old it was so huge, instead of having the building built on empty land at the back of the property but he never replied.

[harry chickpea]

Banyan or fig? The two are often confused. Older trees can be a liability if not properly inspected and maintained. People get killed from falling limbs otherwise.

Interesting idea of income restrictions. I wonder how that will be handled with upwardly mobile people? "I'm sorry, you now make too much. Here is your eviction notice."