JACKSONVILLE, Fla.---Thursday was Terrance Freeman's first chance to meet and greet the people living in district 10.
District 10 is the district Freeman has been appointed by Governor Rick Scott to represent on the Jacksonville City Council following the suspensions of former council members Reggie and Katrina Brown. The focus however, remained whether Terrance Freeman should be eligible to serve and is he the right fit for the district.
"You can't ratify a bad act, if you didn't live there from the beginning, you don't qualify, you can't fix that, there are no do-overs," concerned citizen Malik Jackson said.
Many, like Malik Jackson, are still wondering when Terrance Freeman moved into their district and should someone who is originally from Tallahassee represent them.
We caught up with Terrance after his community meeting Thursday to ask him when he officially became a resident and his thoughts on people's frustrations.
"Look I appreciate all the questions, but again as I said earlier to the group, this is a legal process and it's pending so you have my answers, we established residency. Upon establishing that residency, I looked to find more space for my daughters and that's where we are at right now," Freeman said.
He didn't give us an exact date, but a date is important.
Under city charter, the Governor's appointee must live in the district the moment they take office and during the time they serve.
Tuesday July 10th, Freeman posed with the mayor in anticipation of the position. At the start of the day, Duval County Supervisor of elections Mike Hogan tells us Freeman had an address on file in Mandarin listed which is outside the district. That house is currently up for sale. Later that day he changed his addres to a two bedroom apartment in the district and then again a home, three days later. Freeman officially took the oath of office on Thursday, at that time he was an official resident.
"As I said, after we established residency in the district, I looked to find more space for my daughters. I am confident that we met all the residency requirements. "
Freeman says he understands why people would want someone already living in district ten in his position.
"They're expressing themselves letting me know that they didn't appreciate the process, I hear that, but the reality to me is I am the council member for district 10 and I have assumed responsibility to make sure that district ten has representation when it comes to the tough issues that are going to take place in city hall fighting for dollars."
The lawsuit challenging Freeman's residency on behalf of another candidate interested in the position is still pending and Freeman says he's continuing to focus on moving ahead and representing district ten.