Food Brings Hope to depart northwest Volusia in wake of Pierson Town Council's lease rejection

Food Brings Hope founder Forough Hosseini informed Pierson Town Council members Thursday she will be pulling the organization's nutrition and educational programs from northwest Volusia County.

The council rejected a proposed low-cost lease of space in a town-owned building last week in an episode that demonstrated a culture clash and left people on both sides suggesting a negotiation doesn't appear to be in the works.

"By voting down the lease agreement, versus tabling the agenda item as recommended by your town attorney, we realized you are not interested in working with (Food Brings Hope)," Hosseini wrote in a letter to the Town Council. "We understand."

Read: Food Brings Hope's letter to Pierson Town Council

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Food Brings Hope has provided about $250,000 worth of goods and services to the Pierson area annually for the past decade, as well as millions across Volusia County since 2007. Its KidsZone has offered afterschool education for 12 to 15 students weekly, while also affording 20 adults weekly courses in English as a second language.

Mamie Oatis, the Pierson program director, said she sees 115 to 130 weekly clients at the food pantry, and FBH has distributed more than 500 bags of food weekly. The organization has donated other items to families — appliances, mattresses, clothes, shoes, iPads and laptops — as needed.

The organization, formally known as FBH Community Inc., has been operating out of space in the Mission San Jose, owned by the Catholic Diocese of Orlando.

Hosseini said Friday she was appreciative of working with the mission, but it doesn't have ideal space for what Food Brings Hope does.

"The idea was to have a permanent location to be able to store the items that we need to leave (such as iPads, laptops and books) in a closet we can lock somewhere," she said. "Not to have access to the four rooms 24/7, but to have programs twice a week for three hours each time."

She and other Food Brings Hope team members approached Pierson about leasing four rooms in the former Pierson Elementary School, a building now owned by the town. They proposed a $1-per-year lease to use the cafeteria building — four rooms in total — for 10 years.

Residents and town council members said they had concerns about how the organization's use of the building would increase Pierson's costs.

Pierson's population is 1,491, the smallest of all cities and towns in Volusia County. Its per capita income is $20,000, far lower than the income level in the county, state and nation.

"It is not fair to the (Pierson) taxpayer to front this whole deal," Councilwoman Linnie Richardson said on Friday.

Richardson said the Town Center is currently insured and hooked up to electricity, but the costs would increase with Food Brings Hope's presence.

Asked how much the town pays to furnish the building now, Richardson responded: "I don't know that, but I do know what it costs to run a walk-in cooler and walk-in freezer. That bill would be at least $800 or $1,000 a month."

Richardson said the majority of clients Food Brings Hope serves are not from the town, but rather from surrounding areas in unincorporated Volusia, Lake, Flagler and Putnam counties.

Hosseini noted the northwest Volusia programs are limited to students and parents of Pierson Elementary and Taylor Middle-High schools.

'Cold remark' sends message

Residents packed the council's Nov. 22 meeting, where the lease was on the agenda.

For more than an hour, they voiced concerns, while Hosseini and other Food Brings Hope officials explained the benefits they bring to the community. They decried false claims such as plans to turn the facility into a homeless shelter, busing in people from other parts of the community.

Hosseini showed a willingness to negotiate the terms of the lease, including reconsidering who might cover the added expenses to the town. She asked the council to table the request so Food Brings Hope could negotiate different terms, but the council — on a motion by Richardson — instead voted down the lease.

Hosseini, executive vice president of information systems for ICI Homes — the homebuilding business led by her husband Mori — said FBH's services are paid for by her family foundation.

In her letter, Hosseini wrote: "If this council was serious in negotiating with a non-profit, you wouldn’t instruct us to, as one council member put it, “go and write a new lease” without any additional information or clarity. A cold remark from (Richardson) when asked by Mayor Bennett if they were willing to entertain a revised lease, of “well, I can’t stop them from bringing another lease,” rather than answering the question, was insulting and gave us a clear message of your intent."

What's next for Food Brings Hope

In her letter, Hosseini said Food Brings Hope will discontinue its Pierson-area programs "out of respect" to the council's wishes. She said the organization is open to an invitation to return.

"Please note that we are true to our mission of eradicating hunger amongst children in our community; so, if you start a food pantry and would like us to bring groceries for the townspeople to distribute, please let us know," Hosseini wrote. "If the residents are in need of cleaning products, diapers, etc. to distribute, we are happy to deliver. If a storm happens and there are leaks and your residents need tarps again, please contact us. If school supplies are needed throughout the year, we will be happy to provide."

The final FBH event in northwest Volusia County will be the Annual Hope for the Holidays from 5 to 7 p.m. Dec. 13 at the Mission San Jose.

Come January, Food Brings Hope will shift its resources to other areas of the county it already serves.

"I can discuss in detail why (FBH) programs were immensely successful over the years versus all the other agencies who tried to offer programs in Pierson, but I doubt you’ll be interested in those details," she wrote.

Hosseini called it "admirable" that council members said they "take care of the needs of their own community."

Bennett, the mayor and council member who appeared to be the most interested in continuing talks with Food Brings Hope rather than turning it down flatly, said he had not yet seen the letter but had been expecting to continue negotiating.

Richardson said she doesn't appreciate how Hosseini and her team approached the town.

"They're making us look like such ogres and evil people," Richardson said. "I'm sickened by the condescending, degrading comments from this woman."

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This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Food Brings Hope will leave Pierson area after town's lease rejection