Palm Harbor Local
Welcome to Palm Harbor Local—where we celebrate the heart and soul of our community by sharing the stories of the incredible small businesses that make Palm Harbor thrive.
Hosted by Donnie Hathaway, a Florida native, real estate expert, and passionate community builder, this podcast is all about Building Community—connecting people, businesses, and ideas that shape our town.
Each episode, we sit down with local entrepreneurs, business owners, and changemakers to dive into their journeys—the dreams that sparked their businesses, the challenges they’ve overcome, and the impact they’re making. From brand-new startups to long-standing local favorites, we uncover what makes these businesses special and why they matter to the community.
Whether you're a fellow entrepreneur, a proud Palm Harbor resident, or someone who just loves supporting local, this podcast is your inside look at the passion, dedication, and creativity fueling our local economy.
Because strong businesses build strong communities.
Join us as we shine a light on the people behind the businesses, share valuable insights, and inspire you to engage, support, and grow alongside your community.
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Palm Harbor Local
Inside the Fight Against Local Hunger
In this impactful episode of Palm Harbor Local, Donnie Hathaway sits down with Kristina Garcia, Executive Director of Dunedin Cares and President of the Palm Harbor Main Street Association. Kristina shares how her early experiences in volunteer work led her to a lifelong mission of service. She reveals shocking statistics about food insecurity in Pinellas County—where over 40% of families lack access to consistent, healthy meals—and explains how Dunedin Cares is stepping up to meet this need.
You’ll learn how the food pantry is feeding thousands of families, seniors, veterans, and children, all while operating with a small staff and the help of over 150 volunteers. Kristina also discusses the rising cost of living, the cycle of poverty, and the importance of financial education to help people move toward stability.
Later in the episode, Kristina and Donnie explore her role in revitalizing downtown Palm Harbor through the Main Street Association. From historical preservation to future plans for community events and beautification, Kristina’s vision is one of growth, pride, and stronger local ties.
What You'll Learn in This Episode:
- The surprising number of people facing food insecurity in Pinellas County
- How Dunedin Cares supports working families, veterans, and seniors
- The ripple effect of affordable housing shortages and inflation
- How Kristina is working to preserve Palm Harbor’s history
- Ways the community can get involved in making a difference
Resources & Links:
- Dunedin Cares: https://dunedincares.org
- Palm Harbor Main Street Association: PHMSA
- Palm Harbor Local Instagram: @palmharborlocal
- Newsletter Signup: palmharborlocal.com
Stroll through the laid-back streets of the Palm Harbor community with this informative podcast, proudly brought to you by Donnie Hathaway with The Hathaway Group, your trusted guide and local expert in navigating the diverse and ever-changing property landscape of Palm Harbor.
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Welcome to Palm Harbor Local, a podcast dedicated to building community and sharing inspiring stories from the heart of our community. I'm your host, donnie Hathaway, and today we are joined by Christina Garcia, who is the executive director of Dunedin Cares and the president of the Palm Harbor Main Street Association. Palm Harbor Local is all about celebrating the individuals and businesses who are making a difference, overcoming challenges and fostering connections right here in our hometown. If you're passionate about growing together, getting involved and celebrating the people who are making Palm Harbor thrive, you're exactly where you need to be. In today's episode, you will learn the staggering number of families who cannot afford food in our community, how Christina got involved with Doneating Cares and what she is doing to help those families in need. Plus, we'll talk about the Palm Harbor Main Street Association and what they're doing to help preserve and restore Palm Harbor's history. Don't forget to connect with us on Instagram at palmharborlocal for behind the scenes highlights, plus subscribe to our weekly newsletter at palmharborlocalcom. Let's dive into this week's episode. Christina, welcome to the podcast.
Speaker 2:Thanks, thanks for having me, yeah.
Speaker 1:I'm excited to chat with you. We've known each other for a little while now, but we've never been able to sit down and have a conversation right, so why don't we start off with? What are your current roles in the community? What are you involved in?
Speaker 2:So right now I'm the executive director for Dunedin Cares that's my full-time job and I'm the president for the Palm Harbor Main Street Association, and so those are my main roles that I really handle right now.
Speaker 1:Yeah, how did you get involved with these organizations, right, and like we were just talking about, like you've done a lot of different charitable volunteer work and that sort of stuff. Like where does that passion come from?
Speaker 2:So originally in my very first volunteer role, really as a kid I was a, you know, I was a volunteer with American Red Cross and I worked in the women's NICU at the women's hospital when I was a kid with the babies. I volunteered as a young adult with the Spring of Tampa Bay, so for domestic violence, so that's kind of how I got started. I always did mission work in youth ministry as a young adult.
Speaker 2:But really, you know, I was a volunteer for Dunedin Cares for many years. I was on their board and then I took this role in 2023. So, I've been involved with the pantry since 2017.
Speaker 1:Okay, when did the pantry start? 2015. 2015.
Speaker 2:We're almost 10 years old. In November we'll be 10 years old. Crazy yeah it is, and we grow each year.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I was looking at some, some stats for um, so I had, when I had um Tamara on from feast food pantry, right, um, it was probably a couple of years ago now, but I was, I was shocked, like how many people were in need, like in our, in our area, right, because you, you know, you drive through and you typically don't don't think of that, do you? And so, okay, so pinellas county no, no, no, this was, this was for the state of florida, right, but if you dial it back to like pinellas county, right, but, like, 13 to 15 percent of our population in florida experience limited access to food yes or they don't have adequate access to healthy
Speaker 2:foods and stuff it's 42 percent in pinellas county 42 percent yeah wow. So all of the schools in dunedin um are title one schools, which means they have 42 percent, 42 to 45% free and reduced lunch In order to be a title school. That's what classifies you. So you have to meet that census criteria. So every school in Dunedin is Title.
Speaker 1:I.
Speaker 2:Except for the charter schools. Those would be the only ones that would not be Title.
Speaker 2:I, which, if you think, think about it, is astronomical. And what really hits me are the kids that you know that we have to do the kids meals for because they don't have food. You know, especially over the summer it's very scarce for them. And I know when I worked in the schools and helped my kids was, you know, 21 years PTA. The kids would come to me when I worked in the office and helped as a volunteer and say you know, well, I don't have any, I'll go home all weekend and I won't eat. And so now we have the Pack-a-Sack program, which really helps that a lot because they can make snacks for them and take that stuff home for the weekend and it really helps.
Speaker 2:But I did get a grant for Dunedin Cares so we do kids meals. So when you come in, if you have children or grandkids or anybody in your home that's under the age of 18, we have little backpacks that we pack up and it's got breakfast in there and then either lunch or dinner that the kids get to take home and I feel like that kind of helps offset some of that.
Speaker 2:But that's one of the things that's, you know, really close to my heart. One of the things that we do at the pantry is neighborly comes in so we feed the seniors twice a month and then we have bags that we pack for the shut-ins, the people that don't leave their home, because some of those people are either unable to or just won't. We pack up bags for Catholic charities, for human trafficking victims. We do a pop-up pantry twice a month. So the people who are transportation insecure, we pack up bags for them so that and we take it to their area and then we do a pop-up pantry for them as well. And then we have the blessing box at the VFW.
Speaker 2:So my father's a veteran, so that's something that's really important to me, so we help feed the veterans. And then across the street from us is the falcons nest, which we have it at Dunedin high school, so we help the kids that have are also food insecure and then if there's a student that needs assistance or needs help and doesn't want to shop when there's other people there, they can call me or text me and I'll open up the pantry for them to come in and shop when there's no one else there.
Speaker 1:So you guys. So the pantry is open like certain times during the during the week.
Speaker 2:Yes, so we're open Monday evening from five 30 to seven 30, and then we're open Tuesday, thursday and Saturday from nine 30 to noon.
Speaker 1:And that's a. That's a big number, yeah, so, like the state of Florida, it's 2.9 million people, and then children it was like 820,000, roughly right. Yeah, that's crazy. What do you think is the issue? What's the larger issue that's causing that?
Speaker 2:Well, I think a lot of it is lack of funding for people. So, if you know, housing costs are so high.
Speaker 1:Right.
Speaker 2:Living costs are so high that by the time they pay, a lot of the people who come to us they're people who have just moved to this area, people who are new to this area. By the time they pay their rent, you know you got to pay first, last right when you first move. By the time they pay that they don't have any money left for food. It's kind of a misnomer that they're just deadbeats that don't work. A lot of the people who come to us are employed people who come to us are employed.
Speaker 2:I would say over half of our clients are employed or they're on a fixed income and by the time they pay the lovely healthcare system that we have set up for those really economical prescriptions that we all have to take, by the time they pay for their drugs that they're on, they can't afford to buy food. Time they pay for their drugs that they're on, they can't afford to buy food. So they have to come to us for what they have left. There's a lot of seniors, a lot of veterans that come to us and a lot of working parents that come to us that by the time you know they get the kids closed for school or they get the first and last month's rent paid. They don't have any money left for food.
Speaker 2:So it's like we've set up this society where you know we have this working class of people, that they've paid the lights, they've paid the rent, they've paid their cell phones right, because they all have cell phones. I will say that they all can find us on Facebook or, you know, Google or you know, but by the time they pay all those other items, there's nothing left for food. I mean food is like the last you know priority, and it should be the first priority right.
Speaker 2:Because we all have to eat. But they've got to have a car that runs. So, god forbid, they have to get an oil change that month. That puts them right over the edge Any unexpected expense. A lot of people live paycheck to paycheck. I think the majority of people in society do. There's no money left, you know, set aside or in savings. They don't even think like that. Many people don't think like that.
Speaker 1:Do you think that's like a, like an education, like like educating people on how to like budget properly? Um, cause, I don't think I, you know, like anything I've learned. It's been, you know, uh, knowledge that I've wanted to to garner myself. Or, like you know, my parents didn't teach me much about budgeting. They would help out, like you know, towards the end of high school or something like that. I remember you know sometimes, but like bigger picture, like investing, or or you know, like how to budget properly where to? You know, like you don't learn any of that in school.
Speaker 2:I think a lot of it is that, you know, when we get a larger location. One of the things that I would love to be able to do is I've had several, you know, financial planners that have offered to come in and do very basic, you know, just income and expense, and here's how to maybe not even just set money aside, but here's how to be able to just just pay for the things that you need and have you know enough to even I don't know even even have just a little bit to have to teach your children how to, you know, do a little envelope system. I know, when I was a kid, my parents you know they, we did the envelope system.
Speaker 2:You know, so you had a little bit to tithe and a little bit for savings and you know, they taught you how to like save your birthday money and stuff.
Speaker 2:So I mean that would be great to be able to kind of teach that education because, I think that that's it's valuable, I mean, if you can break the system of of just being in that cycle, because a lot of these people it's what they've seen, so that you know so they continue to do it. And then some of them want so much to get out of the situation that they're in. And I will say I've been around the pantry long enough. I mean I've been there since 2017. I have seen some people that used to come to us. Now they don't have to anymore. Some of them are now our volunteers.
Speaker 1:Cool.
Speaker 2:So you know it is possible to get out of this cycle of thinking that you know you're not going to be able to save enough or you're not going to be able to. You know, or they got a different job, or you know now they're retired or whatever the case may be. But I think that for some people, especially with young kids and you've got two or three kids, it's hard.
Speaker 1:It just is.
Speaker 2:And you're right if you've never learned it as a young person or you don't start early. But even like shopping, like your car insurance, right, or um? I mean health insurance too, right.
Speaker 1:But also like your internet and cable bills and like even shopping those around, because those companies they get you you locked in at a lower rate and then they increase it two years later and then then you got to go through the whole you know system and process of like, okay, how do I reduce it? Do I switch companies? Right, but all that takes time. But it's like the system that we have in order to save money and you know and limit your expenses.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I think some of them aren't. You know, some people aren't savvy enough.
Speaker 1:Right.
Speaker 2:And some people don't think ahead enough to say maybe I should shop around or maybe I could change this, or maybe you know what I mean. Like they, they don't have the wherewithal to think that they even have an option. You know they're, they're just kind of stuck in what they've always done you know, and lack of some of its lack of education and some of it's just not really feeling like they have a choice.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah. So you've been involved in Donating Cares, as you said, since 2017. How has it changed since you first became a volunteer?
Speaker 2:Well, I will say that you know, probably back then we were giving out maybe 150,000 pounds of food a year. Last year we gave out 620,000. Wow yeah. So we're an in pantry shopping pantry. That's where we were a little bit different from some other pantries, in that people come in and shop around our store with a cart and they select the items that they want to take home. So it's a little bit different. So we serve probably fewer people than some other pantries, like we did about 29,300 people last year, Whereas some people might have larger numbers. But it takes longer for our process we can do, you know, maybe five people at a time, right individuals shopping with our volunteers right.
Speaker 2:The volunteers get the items and then they you know for them off the shelf and put them in the cart. They select what they want. But post COVID we changed it to where the volunteers are the only ones touching the shelves. So they shop around and get the items and they get to pick whatever they want and they take home about 65 pounds of food per family and we have everything from. You know, all the dairy, the produce, meat and then all the dried items, and then we have pet food and, you know, paper products and stuff that are donated. The only things that we buy or have from Feeding Tampa Bay is food, so everything else is donated. Paper products are brought to us from a local merchant, madison Avenue Pizza, and then all of our pet products are donated from Dunedin Pet Supply, my Natural Pet and Paul's and Claws. So it's really nice that we have those local partnerships, because we really only want to spend money on something that is our mission, which is food.
Speaker 1:Food, okay, and then so other pantries they provide like a bag or Typically, yes, you get a bag or a box of items.
Speaker 2:It's pre-made with all the same items in it that I just said. They'll give produce and dairy and everything as well, and meat. Most of us have the same suppliers. We're pretty much all supplied by Feeding Tampa Bay and then other agencies or other food banks as well, and then they will give you a pre-packed bag to go and then you drive through and get your bag or your box and you take it home with you and then sort through it.
Speaker 1:Got it, so you're buying the food from Feeding Tampa Bay.
Speaker 2:We don't buy it, it's supplied to us. So USDA funds Feeding America. Feeding America funds Feeding Tampa Bay Feeding Tampa Bay gives to the agencies. Now you do have an option to buy from Feeding Tampa Bay at a reduced rate if you want to buy more, but that's pallets of food. I'm in a double wide trailer. I can't take pallets of anything right now. Um, when we can get a larger building, that would be an option for us, but right now it's just not, because their stuff only comes palletized.
Speaker 1:Yeah, interesting, okay, and so when you're um, so the food, so everything's like donated to you, right, and you have partnerships and stuff like that.
Speaker 2:A lot of items are donated. Um, we do get grants. Um, I am a grant writer, so we do write grants, and we spend between $15,000 to $20,000 a month on food, sometimes more depending on how much we need. Obviously, we have had to limit our guest structure to our guests Area is now Clearwater, dunedin and Palm Harbor only guests area is now. Clearwater, dunedin and Palm Harbor. Only Okay, just because we were feeding and people were coming to us from Tampa Lakeland.
Speaker 1:I mean everywhere.
Speaker 2:So in August of 2022, the board had we had to make the decision to reduce that area.
Speaker 2:Yeah, If they come to us for the first time and they're outside that area, we will do a rapid shop for them. That's they get. We give them a sheet, they fill it out, my warehouse staff in the back fulfills that um, and then we bring it out to the car, um, and then we'll give them a whole thing of resource documents of other pantries that they can go to and that are in their area, um, and we, you know, we just have to explain to them that that's it's a one-time courtesy, basically, and you know, we just had to make that decision because that's the way it is for supply and demand, and they can come every four weeks to shop with us and then, in the interim, they have there's other food pantries that are, you know, around that people can go to. We have one full-time staff member that's me, and then one part-time staff person, who's our pantry operations person, who runs the day-to-day, and then everybody. We have 150 volunteers. So we're staffed six days a week, monday through Saturday, from 8 am to noon.
Speaker 1:And how do you so if someone's in need, and what are the steps to come to you Like they're in your territory?
Speaker 2:they just show up, they show up and bring their ID and shopping bags, if they have them, because again they're going to come in and shop and that's it. And then just the shopping hours Monday evening, tuesday, thursday, saturday and then donations. We usually ask Monday through Saturday from 9 to noon or 8.30 to noon. Ashley is there working longer hours, but she has other administrative things that she's doing during that time. But a lot of people don't realize that we are a six-day-a-week operation because it takes receiving donations and stocking the shelves and things like that.
Speaker 1:Sure, and you said that they can come every four weeks.
Speaker 2:Every four weeks Okay.
Speaker 1:So you keep track of all that we do.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we have a system. They go into the system and then it does alert us if they're coming before it's their time and we will let them know that they can come back the next week or the next day or whenever it's their time.
Speaker 1:Do you know how many food pantries there are in Pinellas County?
Speaker 2:Total. No, there's so many pop-up pantries, pantries at churches, one day a week. Pantries, it would be hard for me to make a definite number, but I can tell you there's probably somewhere in the neighborhood of maybe around 150.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:I mean you've got ones North County, Mid-County, south County. I can tell you there are only a few that do the in-shopping pantry style that we do, like the Choice Food Pantry. There's one in South County that's ran by BayCare. There's one in Oldsmar. It's a little bit smaller than ours but it's Oldsmar Cares. They're not associated with us, we just have a similar name. And then there is one in Clearwater that's called Hopeful Hands. I believe they're open on Fridays only and I believe they have that shopping style as well. They've got some tables out out and you shop by tables. So we are set up like a miniature grocery store. We have coolers and we have shelving units that actually used to be in Walmart and Publix that are actually set up.
Speaker 2:So, they shop around like with a cart, so it's a miniature.
Speaker 1:It's like a convenience store, size store. Okay, cool yeah, and I mean it sounds like every city has some sort of food pantry.
Speaker 2:Oh yes, absolutely.
Speaker 1:Or multiple.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean you've got. Yes, there's one Tarpon, north Port Richey. I mean yeah every city really has something.
Speaker 1:I mean, even if it's, like I said, just a one day a week at a church, I would believe that everybody probably does. If you looked at a map, yeah, yeah, do you think there's? I mean, food pantries are great, right To help people obtain food and get the food that they need and stuff. But, like, is there another avenue to help, like the communities, like maybe on a smaller scale, like you know something like community gardens, like I don't know if we could adapt that into communities, right, because you need space for that, but I was just thinking like, are there other solutions to like help provide our own food and grow our own food, or something like on a local scale?
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Speaker 2:Well, I would think yes, I mean I don't know that it could be done on the same scale as what we do Now. We do have a couple of community gardens that grow herbs and bring the herbs to us. We do have a farmer's market that supplies fresh produce to us. Okay, we do have a farmer's market that supplies fresh produce to us. I don't know that the functionality of it could be on a large enough scale.
Speaker 1:I mean, we get 70,000 pounds of food each year through Feeding.
Speaker 2:Tampa Bay from between the St Pete Free Clinic, what they give us and what Feeding Tampa Bay gives us, because that's coming through Now, it's still coming through farms. Right, it's still USDA, it's still agriculture, but I don't know that that could be on the same scale as what a local farmer could produce.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:But only because of the environment that we live in. I mean, if we lived in more of a rural area, I would say yes.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:But because of us being primarily in the suburbs, you know what I mean. If we lived in of a rural area, I would say yes, yeah, but because of, you know, us being primarily, you know in the suburbs. You know what I mean. I don't know that that could the land's not available. Yeah, could feed the population that we have. You know, because it's so densely populated, this area, I'm not sure we could keep up.
Speaker 1:Yeah, which is crazy. Yeah, I know it's wild it is.
Speaker 2:I mean, when you think of feeding that many people, giving out that many pounds of food in one year and we're only one pantry, right, it's insane. Yeah, it really is. And that there's that much of a need.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and the fact that it's growing too Right. It's not going the other way.
Speaker 2:It's never gone down, I it's not going the other way. It's never gone down, I mean it's every year it goes. I mean that was a 23% increase from 2024. So, it's just, every year it goes up.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:It's insane.
Speaker 1:And obviously the population has grown in Florida.
Speaker 2:But I think 2023 to 2024, I think we lost some or stayed. No, it's saying, yeah, the schools are having to get rid of units because they're saying that the birth rate has gone down.
Speaker 1:Oh well, birth rate yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah. Yeah, but like influx of people coming in, but people moving here. Moving here, it's different. Yeah, people moving here.
Speaker 1:I think like so, total population between 2023 and 2024, I think stayed roughly the same Right, the same yeah.
Speaker 2:We get people more coming in Right.
Speaker 1:So maybe we're maxed out, maybe, I don't know, florida's closed.
Speaker 2:Florida's closed. Let's close it off.
Speaker 1:Give us time to Well we need to close off.
Speaker 2:I mean because that's what we experience the most of, Like I said, people that have just come here, paid their first and last month's rent and then they can't afford anything else. So, that's really, I mean, the majority of what we. We had a 450% increase from 24, I mean, I'm sorry, from 23 to 24 in in my new guests 450% in new guests that just registered with us. Wow, I mean, that's, that's astronomical yeah.
Speaker 2:So that's all people that, like you said, are just coming here. Yeah, and if you think about that too, I mean, that's astronomical, yeah, so that's all people that, like you said, are just coming here.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and if you think about that too, I mean like rent is, I mean on the cheap end, maybe like $1,500.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:So first, last and security, that's $4,500, $5,000.
Speaker 2:Right that they just have to have right out of the gate.
Speaker 1:I mean it's almost enough for, like, the down payment on the house, right and that's, and you're just renting, right, it's yeah.
Speaker 2:And you have to make three times the run, apparently.
Speaker 1:Yeah To the case, yeah To qualify.
Speaker 2:Right In one month.
Speaker 1:Yeah, how you fix that, how you solve that. No but no, you know that's interesting. You guys do a gala every year, right, we do.
Speaker 2:Every year, usually towards the end of June. Next year it'll be end of February, next year it'll be February 28th. But yeah, that's our one big fundraiser that we do every year to just kind of help us get through a few of the months really. You know a few of the months really, and you know it's, we usually we have it at city hall and it's just a really. It's just a quaint affair. It's nothing big or fancy or anything, but it is a lot of fun.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it is, and you're doing it for a good cause obviously. Yeah, all right. So let's talk about Palm Harbor Main Street Association. Yeah, how did you get involved? How did you? Come over to Palm Harbor.
Speaker 2:I don't know, donnie, how did I get involved? I don't even know what I'm doing half the time at the meetings. I got involved because Nancy said this is what you're going to do and I said okay, nancy. And then I walked into a meeting one day and there was a board and my name was on the board as president.
Speaker 1:That's how I got involved, um yeah, the perfect president for what we need right now. Well, I don't know, we'll see.
Speaker 2:Um, but that's really what. What got me involved? I think it's because she, you know I was on the, so I was on the merchants a few years ago. Um I was yeah, well, and for Palm Harbor. I was the treasurer for the Palm Harbor merchants too with.
Speaker 2:Ben and Joe and Scott. Way back in the day we did one event Fall into Music in the park. It was a long time ago. And then I was, you know I was on the Dunedin merchants as well. So I have some you know experience in that realm. And I think Nancy knew that I have obviously a lot of 501c3 experience, which this you know is. And since this was going to be, you know it's under the Florida Main Street Association for the state of Florida she wanted somebody who had that type of experience, who knew how to do the incorporation, who knew, you know, a little bit about the tax part of it and everything like that. So she asked me to get involved and I told her I would.
Speaker 2:So there's quarterly trainings with the state of Florida. It's very structured, which is fine. I mean I'm happy to help and happy to do it. But that's a completely a volunteer role and I've been getting helping more and more. In May I have to go to a training in DeLand. In September I'm actually going to be one of the instructors for one of the trainings. There's like a best practices for financials for 501c3. So I'm going to assist with that.
Speaker 2:So I mean it's a it's a great organization to help, I think, especially in our case, because we have such a rich history in Palm Harbor that people don't know about.
Speaker 2:You know, in July we're going to celebrate being 100 years, you know, actually being named, you know, palm Harbor, which is huge and I think that it's, you know, it's really something to celebrate and many people don't even realize that that's around.
Speaker 2:I mean, there's so many people here who haven't even been to the Palm Harbor Museum. So we're going to have a pop-up Palm Harbor, you know museum, historical museum right at the Masonic Lodge so people can just walk in and go there for the whole week it's going to be. It's going to start like that week of you know, july 14th and go all the way till the 19th, and then we get to have a big celebration on the 19th, and then we get to have a big celebration on the 19th that's going to start at Harbor Hall with a vendor fair and then later in the evening we're going to have a really a big festival party kind of thing at Pop Stancel. So I mean, I think it's going to be, you know, a great event that's going to culminate in truly a celebration of the historical preservation of our town.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I think that's pretty cool, like, like you said, like a lot of people really don't know how much history there is here in Palm Harbor and and um, like Crystal Beach and you know all that Right. So it's uh, it's cool to um to bring some of that to the forefront and and just make people more more aware of that, especially all the people that are new to the area, like we just talked about, right.
Speaker 2:Absolutely. Yeah, they'll be blown away. I mean, a lot of people, just, I think, are really going to be surprised and we have a proclamation for the naming of Palm Harbor, so there's going to be a reading of that and it's exciting, it really is.
Speaker 1:Yeah so Main Street of America, right, that is. And it's exciting, it really is. Yeah so, main Street of America, right, that is a statewide program.
Speaker 2:Yes, well, it's a national program. National program yeah, but we're part of the state portion, yeah.
Speaker 1:Okay.
Speaker 2:It is a national program.
Speaker 1:Okay, it's all over.
Speaker 2:Yeah, there's downtowns everywhere that use it.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and the whole goal of it right is just to build up the downtown.
Speaker 2:Yes.
Speaker 1:To restore the history of it right.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. And to preserve some of the historical areas, some people have to have their buildings redone.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:It's to make the right-of-way signs if they need to be done, whatever needs to really be focused on in your specific downtown area. They redid Newport Ritchie with it. That's really the most recent experience. I think that's close to our area, but some people need signage. It just depends on what you need your focus on. We have some historical buildings downtown that we're going to try to highlight some of those, but it's mostly going to be you know signage and you know making things look nicer.
Speaker 1:We're going to do some beautification.
Speaker 2:We're trying to get some grants for that, so really it's going to be around that. I mean, most of the grants are going to be for the downtown, they're not really for the event. The event's going to be sponsored.
Speaker 1:Yeah, it'll be cool to see. We were just in Dunedin last night and just to see like some of their historic buildings, people walking around in the community and stuff. So it'll be cool to see Palm Harbor at some point. Get, get to that level right. Where we have some, some of the old buildings that have restored and utilized, yeah and, and people like coming downtown but then like staying downtown to walk around and shop and yeah, and do all those things.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that means a little different, you know they have a CRA.
Speaker 1:So there's this a little bit.
Speaker 2:you know there's this a little bit different. They actually have a cause. They're a city, so they have a division of their city. That is the community redevelopment. Yeah, but for us, because we're unincorporated which again some people don't know, you know, we're actually part of a county. So that's where the Main Street is really helpful for us, because it helps us get a different kind of funding because it makes us a 501c3. So it allows us to get the support that we need from the state of Florida and the county so that we're able to make our downtown. We want to make it nice, we want to make it truly walkable, we want to be able to put more businesses in down here. I mean, we've already grown leaps and bounds from where we were before.
Speaker 2:I think, I mean when you saw this town a few years ago, you know. I mean it was vastly different from where it is today, and I know a lot of people were against the roundabout, but I do think it's helped. So you know, I mean I think we can just keep going in that direction. You know, I mean Palm Harbor really is a community and when they come together they really do great things. It's just a lot of people, I think, don't realize how supportive we really are of one another.
Speaker 1:Yeah, so do you think, like Palm Harbor being unincorporated has been is kind of like one of the things that holds Palm Harbor back?
Speaker 2:You know, I think it. I will tell you, having done festivals down here and having helped with, you know, palm Harbor Fest for a number of years, in many different capacities, with the chamber it's you know it does make it a little bit more of a struggle. I mean, I've done a lot of festivals in Dunedin and it's vastly different when you work with the city of Dunedin versus having to do things with the county down here.
Speaker 2:Now, I don't want to slam the county, of course, because they have their own infrastructure that they have to and their rules they have to abide by, but there's a lot more red tape.
Speaker 1:I'll just put it that way.
Speaker 2:And now, post-new Orleans, there's going to be even a lot more red tape. I mean, I also help with the holiday parade and there's a lot of infrastructure that people don't realize that we have to move through to be able to make those events happen. And I'm not sure what's going to happen, because now there's different barricades that have to be used and all kinds of stuff that has to happen. So I will say that it's definitely more of a little bit flanagling that you have to go through. And yes, it is more difficult to go through all of that when you're dealing with the county level versus when you have that city, that's it's like they have their own way of doing things and there's three or four people that you have to go to and you know who those three people are, versus you've got to go to 14 different people. You know what I mean? It's it's a lot more that you kind of have to navigate. So, yeah, it's difficult.
Speaker 1:Homer was going through spurts of like there's been some progress and then things fall apart. And then there's been some progress and things fall apart. And I wonder if that's you know some of the reasons why, like getting everybody in the community on the same page. Yes, I think everybody wants to see Palm Harbor grow and become a downtown. Um, but how we get there is is the difficult part.
Speaker 2:It is because you know what happens is a couple of business owners want to step up and do stuff and then they get discouraged because they're like, what's the point if I have to go through all this red tape and fight Like I'm one? First of all, if they're already running a business, they're busy Like they. You know what I mean. They're running a business, they've got payroll, they've got other things they have to do they're not worried about. They don't have five hours to sit on the phone to talk to somebody. You know what I mean. I mean, that's just not, that's not their first thing that they have to do for the day. You know they've got to order food or they've got to buy beer or they've got to, you know. So it's. It's. It's frustrating, I'm sure, for people. And and then they get fussed at by somebody from the county because they don't follow the rules exactly. Well, why don't you just explain to me what the rules are?
Speaker 1:Like, you know what I mean, and then I'll follow them.
Speaker 2:I mean they don't. It's not like they want to be in trouble, you know. So I can see where it becomes very, very frustrating.
Speaker 2:And I know, you know, as a former you know board member of the chamber, I mean, I myself found it frustrating because I'm like listen, we're just, I'm just a volunteer trying to help out issues. We just want to get together and help and be on the same page. And it's frustrating when they keep moving the rules and changing the rules. You know how do you follow the rules when they're always different.
Speaker 2:So I think if we could all be on the same page which hopefully this is where organizations like the Main Street can maybe help we can come up with a set of rules. We can, you know, help and work together, you know, with the chamber and with the Merchants Association. I mean, you know Ben does an amazing job with the Merchants Association. He really does. I have a tremendous amount of respect for Ben. I've known him for years and he's a wonderful person that he knows what needs to be done. He's very smart and you know, I kind of have always followed his lead when it comes to stuff. But we also kind of learned some stuff together, you know, like we've both had our hands slapped before you know what I mean.
Speaker 2:So you know, and the same thing with Matt from the chamber. I mean he, you know, we've learned. We've learned a few things together too. I mean when we did Palm Harbor Fest last year it was a struggle and now they changed everything again this year because of New Orleans. So it's like, you know, we went to set everything up, we thought we were good and then they changed everything again. So it's we just have to kind of learn together.
Speaker 2:But I think once we come up with a panel of you know set rules, then we can, all the three organizations can, and it's funny that it has to be three organizations for one downtown. But because everybody said, oh, is the merchants going away, I'm like no, that's not, they have a separate focus. Main Street is really for historical preservation. We're not just an event. You know event association. I mean we'll work with the merchants. You know we're all going to get some free. You know events to help out with the sheriffs, which is great, but we're all going to work together. But I think we just need to find a cohesive way to to work with the County. You know that's been the biggest, you know hiccup really.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And it's we. We all want to follow the rules.
Speaker 1:Of course. Yeah, you know, maybe having that um, those three organizations that are consistent, you know, helps, you know, with the county and stuff, just communication back and forth with that side of it too, absolutely yeah. So the Palm Harbor, not Main Street, but the Merchants Association, what are the three organizations like? What are their roles in the community, right, so people can kind of understand like the chamber, like their role versus the Main Street Association, versus the Merchant Association.
Speaker 2:Well, the way that I see it, I mean the chamber is largely responsible. It's a membership organization. So it's really responsible for business connections Small business owners.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Networking, marketing the businesses that are part of the chamber. That's really the role of the chamber, hugely important. I mean they also do a lot of education right for their members. I mean they educate on, you know, how to market your business. I mean they teach all kinds of different classes for their members. So, and then they have connecting the businesses too, because they have, you know, networking events and creating a great ambassadorship in the chamber. So there's a huge, you know role that the chamber plays. Of course they do. You know Palm Harbor Fest to, you know, help their budget as well, as it's a great family fun event, you know. So you know that's. I think that's the way I see the chamber. I mean, you know, if you have a business in this town, you probably should be part of the chamber period Because and be involved in the chamber, don't just join and then not do anything. Yeah, as far as the Main Street Association, I mean I see it as you know, we're here to improve the downtown, work together and preserve the you know history of the downtown, know history of the downtown and really, you know, I've always kind of thought of it as and this is part of what's in the mission statement, but to, not just to preserve the downtown, but to honor Palm Harbor, you know, kind of raise it up and and not just, you know, talk to people about it, but but explain why it's important to be proud of the town that you live in you
Speaker 2:know. And then as far as the Merchants Association, I mean that's simple, that's just creating synergy amongst the businesses internally. You know. I mean Ben is really good about. You know, if you have a problem let me help you fix it, you know. Or I can tell you who to go to. You know he's been around here long enough that he knows everyone you know, so I think that's been around here long enough that he knows everyone you know.
Speaker 2:So, um, I think that's probably really their focus. It's more internal how we can support you. Um, and you know he's very resourceful at getting you know people help when they need help.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I love that. It's good to see the groups working together and it seems like the businesses are kind of bought into all of that as well. Right To see the growth of downtown and all of Palm Harbor.
Speaker 2:I think so too. I really I've seen more commitment, more people, more synergy, I think, than I have seen in this town in years recently.
Speaker 1:What do you think the reason behind that is?
Speaker 2:I think people are ready for change.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:And I think they're willing to do what it takes to make it happen. We've had more people you know in the Main Street boardroom, right? I mean you know you're there, you know you're willing to put in the work. I mean you know, and I think you know that speaks. You know you're there, you know you're willing to put in the work. I mean you know, and and I think you know that speaks you know to your character too. I mean you know, and what you're willing to do for your business and your community you know. So I just think it makes a difference when people are willing to lend a hand. You know it's going to change. You know their career and their business and where they live.
Speaker 2:You know, I mean, I live in Palm Harbor, so it matters to me how this community is viewed.
Speaker 1:And it's not even just the business owners, right? Or people that benefit financially from it. It's like the residents that want to be involved too, right? The person on our executive board.
Speaker 2:Our secretary is a mom. She's one of my PTA moms. You know her stake in the community is that her kids go to school here.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:You know and you know for me. I mean, I don't work in Palm Harbor, but I feed people from Palm Harbor.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:You know and you know, feast is a food pantry in Palm Harbor very dear to my heart, you know, and and we feed people. You know back and forth.
Speaker 1:We're referral partners, you know. I mean we help each other. So I think that you know you. You have to support your community. It's very important. Yeah, I like it Well, christina, thanks for being here, thanks for sharing all your insights. Appreciate you.
Speaker 2:Thank you, I appreciate you too.
Speaker 1:Thank you so much for tuning into another episode of Palm Harbor local. We are incredibly grateful for our sponsors who make this show possible. Jake, with Roadmap Money, now be sure to keep supporting these local businesses and let's keep building community together. Until next time, stay connected, stay involved and keep making Palm Harbor an amazing place to call home.
