Every now and then something happens that is considered a "wake up call." I think we just saw such an event with the City of Boca Raton Housing Authority debacle and it is an issue that needs to be addressed by our public figures now.

For those of you who don't know, the Housing Authority announced that it would accept applications for HUD Section 8 housing vouchers on the morning of Wednesday, March 12th. Hundreds of people began lining up at the Glades Road office the evening before and by midnight the police had been called in to patrol the crowd. At 2 a.m. the Housing Authority passed out 500 of its 600 applications, reserving 100 for disabled individuals. At 9 a.m. the Housing Authority asked for disabled individuals to come forward, which caused a crowd surge. Evidently, thereafter the police told everyone to leave and hundreds of people were turned away without even getting an application.

Leaving aside the issue of a near riot and police action in Boca Raton, what is even more troubling is the numbers and desperation of the people waiting for vouchers. Photos of the crowd show families and children who lined up for hours for the privilege of getting subsidized housing. The pictures illustrate the fact that there are a large number of individuals in our area who are in dire need of help.

In these troubled economic times with a recession looming, many people are just a step away from homelessness. The Housing Authority was clearly caught off guard by the crowd and unprepared for the number of applicants. The Housing Authority alone, however, can not solve this societal problem. Our local, county and state governments need to take action now and help people obtain affordable housing before things get worse.

The Housing Authority crowd was probably just the tip of the iceberg representing only a fraction of the numbers that need help. Now is the time, before there is a true catastrophe, for our public officials to step forward and address the issue of affordable housing.

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