This board has been looking for ways to address the significant dropout rate in this community.

It's not a shelter problem. It's a community-wide problem.

It would be real simple to say only look at Caroline Brevard. These are very heart-wrenching, difficult decisions.

It's a huge change in philosophy. But (City Manager Anita Favors Thompson) has given me clear marching orders: Make this a world-class shelter and all that entails.

Nobody is going to build, or nobody is going to invest in our community if we are not willing to invest in ourselves.

We have to follow that project. That has to be done before the community center gets done.