Florida Construction News staff writer
Blue Sky Communities and Community Assisted and Supported Living celebrated the completion of Fairlawn Village, a 116-unit affordable housing apartment community in Orlando, with a ribbon cutting ceremony.
All units at Fairlawn Village are reserved for residents with incomes at or less than 60 per cent of the area median income (AMI). Additionally, 20 units will be permanent supportive housing, with casework services provided for people experiencing homelessness, survivors of domestic violence, people with a disability or youth aging out of foster care.
Eight years ago the city approved about $7-million to purchase seven vacant, foreclosed, uninhabitable properties in the greater Washington Shores and Mercy Drive areas, with a goal to transform these sites into safe, attractive and affordable housing for residents. With the grand opening of Fairlawn Village, the city celebrates the last of the parcels to be redeveloped from the 2015 purchase. The other new developments include:
- Village on Mercy, a 166-unit affordable apartment community developed by Ability Housing
- Pendana at West Lakes, a 200-unit, mixed-income multifamily community
- Pendana at West Lakes Senior Residences, a 120-unit affordable apartment homes designated for seniors
- Both Pendana communities were developed by LIFT Orlando
Following that initial property purchase in 2015, the city’s original investment in the purchase of these properties has yielded more than $115 million in private investment or a return of nearly $16 for each dollar invested by the city.
This is a small step. We need so many more affordable housing units. Right now and for the past approximately 5-7 years, the Orlando Housing Authority hasn’t even opened their wait list to be able to put on a list waiting for housing. Then, if youever do, by a miracle, get on a list, you have to wait approx., 5 years more, for your turn. This is insane! My husband-age 57 and myself-age 53 have been trying so hard to find a 1bdrm/1 ba apartment that we can afford. We are both disabled and I’m real sick and in a wheelchair. We bring in a TOTAL in SocialSecurity of $1593 a month. The places availablr, that we could swing the rent, won’t let us live there cause we don’t have income that is 2.5 – 3 times the rent, which they require. New owners took over where we have lived the past 3 years and raised our rent like $200 and they went from charging, all of tenants, $75 to $155 (flat rate) for water, sewer, and trash(over doubled). Our rent/ other has always been on time. They gave us til Oct. to move, cause we don’t make the required income of 3 times the rent. I will never survive being on the street. Idk what to do? Any suggestions, please?