Community leaders, elected officials from throughout South Florida, businesses owners, and residents gathered at the Homestead-Miami Speedway Champions Club for Mayor Steven D. Losner’s 2022 State of the City Address: Destination Homestead. Mayor Losner’s State of the City consisted of both a short film and an impassioned speech celebrating Homestead’s past, present, and future. The film delved into Homestead’s journey through hardships and triumphs over the past years as told by the elected officials and community members who contribute to Homestead’s success on a daily basis. His remarks looked at all Homestead has been through since he took office in late 2019 – from living through the deadliest pandemic in our lifetime, to ensuring Homestead is the destination for revitalization, quality of life, economic growth, arts and education, accessibility, and community. He also announced, to a very excited crowd, the coming of Chick-Fil-A and Flanigan’s to Homestead.
“As we traveled together to “Destination Homestead,” we took a look back at the past events which brought us to this moment,” remarked Mayor Losner. “As we look confidentially to the journey ahead, a journey that is already underway, toward bringing our Homestead back to the future as the destination of deep South Miami-Dade County.”
The premiere took place on August 24th, which was also the 30th Anniversary of Hurricane Andrew’s landfall in Homestead. The date was specially selected as a commemoration of the storm that impacted the Homestead community and a symbol of how far Homestead has come from that total devastation. To pay tribute to the occasion , there was a special video message presented by Bryan Norcross, Hurricane Specialist, who has been described as “The Voice of Andrew.” The video was followed by heartfelt words from former City of Homestead Mayor Tad DeMilly, who was in office when Hurricane Andrew struck South Florida. Former Mayor DeMilly recounted the days leading up to and after the storm, the hardships faced, and his experiences during those trying times.
Following the premiere of Destination Homestead and Mayor Losner’s remarks, those in attendance enjoyed a reception that included desserts donated by The Palace Gardens.
If you missed the event, the livestream can be seen at the City of Homestead website (www.cityofhomestead.com/SOTC). Destination Homestead can now also be seen on the City of Homestead’s local access channel (Comcast 77, ATT in the Menu under Government TV) or Facebook (www.facebook.com/CityofHomestead).