Our Work Together
Rick with his daughters, spreading the word about his petition drive at MonroeMakeover.com. (2024)
FDOT workers adding concrete curbing, and then landscaping, to medians on North Monroe. (2023)
Revitalizing North Monroe
No one is working harder than Rick Minor to make North Monroe something we can be proud of. And it’s producing REAL results! Working with neighbors, businesses, and his colleagues, he:
Successfully led the effort to obtain $21 million for North Monroe, Tallahassee’s #1 Gateway. This is a huge win for District 3 and Leon County, and Rick worked closely with neighbors, businesses, staff and his Commission colleagues to make it happen. The funding will save lives by bringing safety improvements like new sidewalks, upgraded intersections and crossings, and better lighting to the North Monroe corridor.
Created the MonroeMakeover.com petition drive, which collected more than 1,400 petition signatures and letters of support from local businesses. This demonstration of widespread support helped Rick ensure that Blueprint funds were committed to the corridor. Click HERE to read Rick’s op-ed from 2024 about the petition drive.
Initiated the creation of a North Monroe Citizens’ Task Force and, with support from his County Commission colleagues, incorporated the Task Force’s recommendations into Leon County’s five-year strategic plan.
Set up Leon County as a partner in developing anti-human trafficking training to fight back on human trafficking along North Monroe and throughout the Big Bend. For the Tallahassee Democrat’s coverage of this story, click HERE.
And there’s even more going on…
Blueprint recently finished two projects that upgraded medians and installed landscaping,
the Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) is nearly done with new sidewalks and upgraded underground utilities on the west side of North Monroe, between John Knox and Lake Shore, and
in FY27, FDOT will begin an extensive resurfacing project and is working with the County and City to incorporate other improvements at the same time.
In summary, there are FIVE North Monroe construction projects that are upcoming or have been recently completed!
Leon County citizens reviewing the preliminary design for Tharpe Street at Blueprint’s public meeting. (February 2026)
Pushing for Tharpe Street Upgrades
Tharpe Street is also one of Rick’s top priorities. He was the only candidate in this race who attended Blueprint’s Tharpe Street public meeting in February to discuss the upcoming new sidewalks and road improvements. Public interest in this project is very high, and the turnout was outstanding.
Rick is committed to obtaining full funding for Blueprint’s Tharpe Street project, in the same way he led the effort to secure $21 million for North Monroe.
In 2023 Rick and his Blueprint colleagues voted to accelerate the Tharpe Street project by seven years. The design phase will start by December, is fully funded, and will last about 24 months. Construction of the most critical sidewalk segment — from Trimble Road to Valley Green Drive — is also funded. However, the majority of construction still needs money. To close this funding gap, Blueprint staff plan to apply for federal grants, in much the same way that Rick and Leon County staff successfully obtained $16.8 million for North Monroe. Chances are very good, but the outcome is uncertain.
At our September Blueprint meeting, Commissioner Caban presented research suggesting that a different Blueprint project — Segment C of the Airport Gateway, may no longer be needed. If this is true, Blueprint would have an extra $20 million available for the Tharpe Street project. Rick is committed to obtaining this $20 million for Tharpe Street.
NOTE: Rick would like to thank Commissioner Caban for making Tharpe Street a key priority of his, and for his research into the availability of Blueprint funds for the project’s construction phase. His work on Tharpe Street is making a real difference.
Rick presenting at a North Monroe Business Crime Watch meeting (2026)
Getting the word out about our neighborhood safety meeting for Runnymede and the Plantation Woods neighborhoods. (2025)
Fighting to reduce crime
Making our neighborhoods and businesses safer has always been an important part of Rick’s work. As Commissioner, he has:
Collaborated with the Leon County Sheriff’s Office to establish three new business crime watch networks along North Monroe street. At the latest meeting, the Leon County Sheriff’s Office announced that crime on North Monroe dropped by 34.6% from 2022 to 2025.
Earlier this year, Rick initiated a project to develop a free training course to protect Leon County seniors from online scams, identity theft and the pitfalls of AI. Rick worked with industry experts, a talented team of FSU graduate students, and Leon County’s Community & Media Relations Department to develop and present the training.
Organized neighborhood crime watch meetings for numerous District 3 neighborhoods. Rick worked with neighbors to set the meeting date/location, canvassed the neighborhoods to pass out meeting flyers, and invited law enforcement to present specific public safety data and provide guidance on how to keep the neighborhoods safe. Click here, here and here for examples.
Worked with our state legislative delegation and anti-human trafficking experts to pass statewide legislation that cracks down on human trafficking. Click here to read some of the media coverage.
Rick even made magnets listing important public safety phone numbers and distributed them to hundreds of businesses along North Monroe. Read WTXL’s coverage of the story HERE.
Columbia Gardens Apartments at South City
Creating more affordable housing
Leon County will need 11,500 new affordable housing units by 2045, so Rick is highly committed to increasing our stock of housing. He and his County Commission colleagues have expanded programs that help finance construction, and the County has also donated parcels to the Community Land Trust.
In Leon County, project financing is often the barrier to building more affordable housing. With this in mind, Rick and his Commission colleagues collaborated with the Capital Area Justice Ministry to dedicate $500,000 a year for gap financing of affordable housing projects.
Rick and his colleagues have authorized $183 million in bond financing for development by the Leon County Housing Finance Authority. This helped secure an additional $125 million in private, state, and federal funding.
Rick and his colleagues have also invested $5.8 million in affordable rental projects, which helped secure another $66 million in private, state, and federal funding.
These efforts and others like them are leading to real progress: more than 1,200 new affordable rental units have been constructed or will be constructed over the next 12-18 months. Locally, this is the greatest increase in housing developments for low-income families in more than 50 years. There is still a lot of work to do, but Leon County is taking solid steps forward.
It’s important to note that Leon County also has programs to help preserve the current stock, with down payment assistance and home rehabilitation/repairs.
Protecting our natural resources and promoting sustainability
Rick has a strong environmental record and has been endorsed by the Sierra Club Big Bend Group. Some examples:
Last year Rick partnered with neighbors and conservation groups, to protect Lake Jackson and the Meridian Road canopy from massive overdevelopment. During comprehensive plan rewrites last year, Leon County / City of Tallahassee staff proposed an expansion of the Urban Services Area -- as well as other land use changes -- for 1,700 acres of rural land north of Lake Jackson. If this proposal had been adopted, it would have allowed the development of tens of thousands of new housing units, contributing to sprawl and threatening an environmentally-sensitive area.
In fact, the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP) sent two letters, expressing concern that development of this magnitude could have a detrimental impact on the Lake Jackson Aquatic Preserve. Large scale development in this area would also have threatened the canopy at Meridian Road, which is already near capacity during rush hours.
Working with conservation groups and neighbors, Rick stood strong against these excessive land use changes and the proposal was rescinded.
Rick believes we can find a reasonable solution that fully protects Lake Jackson and the canopy at Meridian Road.
Rick also believes that political candidates should show their commitment to sustainability now, before they’re even elected. One way to do this is by pledging carbon neutrality for their campaigns. Rick ran carbon neutral campaigns in 2018 and 2022 and is doing so again in 2026. After the election, his campiagn will calculate its carbon footprint, then donate to a carbon fund that invests in sustainability practices to offset that amount.
Rick speaking about a $800,000 federal appropriation to restore Ford’s Arm at Lake Jackson.
Addressing homelessness, poverty, and feeding the hungry
As the former CEO of our regional food bank, Rick has in-depth experience when it comes to reducing homelessness, poverty, and food insecurity. Rick has:
Supported greater County engagement on addressing homelessness, such as the joint County-City investment of $6.2 million in dedicated funding — the greatest investment addressing homelessness in the history of this community.
Voted to approve the creation of the Homeless Outreach Street Team (HOST), which now assists those struggling with homelessness in securing safe, stable housing.
Initiated a new program that identifies the 10 most food-insecure neighborhoods and works with neighbors to increase access to nutritious food. (Read the op-ed by Rick and the then-CEO of the food bank.)
Continued to volunteered for the Big Bend Continuum of Care’s annual Point In Time (PIT) count, which interviews unsheltered people and conducts a region-wide count of those struggling with homelessness.
Restoring passenger rail to Leon County
Rick has been a leader in the effort to restore passenger rail to North Florida, and momentum is building. Plus, Amtrak’s new Mardi Gras route — which provides twice-daily service between Mobile, AL and New Orleans, LA — runs just to the west of North Florida and has already had 150,000 riders… more than twice the projected amount. The Mardi Gras route’s incredible success bolsters our push to restore passenger in North Florida.
As a Commissioner, Rick has:
Partnered with state legislators, rail advocates, and our County lobbyists to introduce legislation in which Florida would seek membership in the Southern Rail Commission (SRC). Rail experts believe that joining the SRC is the best path to bringing rail back to this region.
Succeeded in obtaining unanimous approval from the Florida Association of Counties (FAC) for making Southern Rail Commission membership a FAC statewide legislative priority.
Rallied support from 73 of Florida’s local elected officials, each of whom signed a letter of support for SRC membership. The letter was subsequently sent to Florida’s Governor, State Senate President, and State House Speaker.
Restoring passenger rail to North Florida will be an ongoing, yearslong effort, but thanks to Rick and his fellow advocates, we gotten further than ever before. This year, Rick and his partners continue to seek legislative approval for Florida’s SRC membership.
Leon County Commission Chambers
Ensuring that our local government performs at the highest ethical standards
Rick has focused on raising Leon County’s ethical standards and bringing more transparency to lobbying practices. He has:
Led the Commission to adopt stronger ethical standards in its Code of Ethics ordinance.
Initiated the successful push for lobbying reform at the County, as well as at Blueprint.