TAMPA, Fla. — A group of people protested in front of Tampa City Hall in response to council members' decision not to put a rent control measure on the ballot this November.
The measure failed on Wednesday, Aug. 4, one week after the city council voted 6-1 in favor of plans to let voters decide on a housing emergency declaration.
Craig Birchfield of the Tampa Tenants Union said living in the area feels like a monthly battle due to the rising rent prices. He said he's having to live paycheck to paycheck.
"I don't know anybody who's not feeling their nervous system attacked every month wondering if you're gonna have a roof over your head," Birchfield said.
Birchfield was among those who spoke in favor of rent control at Thursday's packed city council meeting where city staff expressed their concerns about legal challenges the city would face under state law and the idea that rent control could actually hurt tenants instead.
However, demonstrators disagreed with the arguments and said the harm is already being done.
Tampa-native Maya Mitchell attended the protest and said she's seen people she knows having to disperse into different neighborhoods because of the rent prices.
"Personally, my family, they have had to move in with one another and overall just curb the other expenses that they have in order to be able to afford rent," Mitchell said.
The average renter in the city of Tampa is spending 42% of their income to keep a roof over their head, according to a report from Online Mortgage Advisor.
Analysis from Realtor.com shows the median rent from December 2020 to December 2021 went up 19.3% across the nation.
Regions in Tampa, St. Petersburg and Clearwater saw the second-highest median rent increase in the country, with prices rising to $2,038 or 35% from the previous year.
Birchfield said worries he may be forced to leave the Tampa Bay region, his home for most of his life, if rent prices continue to rise.
"We love the city. We want to see the working class here thrive and I want to be a part of that, but it is hard, some months to think how long can we afford to stay here," Birchfield said.