Gainesville residents urged to attend meetings about how affordable housing funds are spent

Residents are encouraged to provide their input into how the city of Gainesville will allocate funds for affordable housing locally.

Residents will have that opportunity at two upcoming meetings hosted by the city to discuss its Local Housing Assistance Plan (LHAP) that will be held at 10 a.m. Feb. 7 at the Thomas Center, 302 NE Sixth Ave. and at 6 p.m. Feb. 8 at the Santa Fe College Gainesville Technology Entrepreneurship Center (GTEC) at 2153 Hawthorne Road.

“The meetings encourage people to engage and plug into what is going on in their community,” said Corey Harris, the city’s housing and community development director.

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According to the city, the Feb. 7 meeting will focus on affordable housing developers, builders, lenders and social service agencies and the Feb. 8 meeting will focus more on neighborhood representatives and the general public.

The city receives State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) funds from the State of Florida’s Florida Housing Finance Corporation (FHFC). The purpose of that funding is to provide affordable housing assistance to city households earning low and moderate incomes, according to the city's website.

The meetings will be held to receive public input relevant to the proposed three-year SHIP Local Housing Assistance Plan that will govern the SHIP Program’s affordable housing activities from July 1 through June 30, 2026, city officials say.

“Affordable housing is a hot topic right now,” Harris said. “This is one of many opportunities to engage in the process. It is a great time to have a say-so.”

As the city’s neighborhood planning coordinating unit, the LHAP does not address zoning or any other development rules and/or regulations. The LHAP simply describes how the city will spend SHIP funds and comply with SHIP requirements, said John Wachtel, neighborhood planning coordinator for the city.

Citizens can also submit written comments to the LHAP via mail to the City of Gainesville HCD Department at 306 NE Sixth Ave., Gainesville, Florida, 32627-0490 or via email to wachteljs@gainesvillefl.gov

For more information, contact Wachtel at 352-393-8565.

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Gainesville residents urged to give input at meetings about housing