You can weigh in on Brevard County affordable housing plan
It's no secret that housing costs in Brevard County are soaring, putting ownership out of reach for many and causing tenants to move as rents shoot up.
Now is your chance to weigh in on how the county is dealing with the crisis.
Federal law requires communities receiving federal funding for housing to complete a consolidated plan outlining how they plan to address the housing needs of low- to moderate-income residents of their residents.
The draft proposal of the Brevard County HOME Consortium 2022-2026 Consolidated Plan is available for the public to read on the county’s website, and staff are soliciting feedback from the community to include in the finalized version.
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The county worked with stakeholders such as the Brevard Homeless Coalition, the Affordable Housing Advisory Council, as well as the Brevard County Community Development Block Grant Advisory Board, in developing the plan and soliciting feedback from the public.
Brevard plans to leverage two federal funding sources, the community development block grant and the HOME funds totaling about $6.6 million. Of that, the plan states that $2.6 million will be available in the first year.
According to the draft, the money will rehabilitate 25 rental housing units and 30 homeowner units. It will also add 10 housing units to the current supply and provide direct financial assistance to 15 households.
Housing and Human Services Director Ian Golden was unavailable for comment for this story.
Critics say that neither the amount of money available or the county's plan to spend it is adequate to deal with the current crisis.
“What is critical is the lack of small rental units especially for the labor force needed for strong economy as well as for our elderly,” said Sandra Sullivan, a District 4 County Commission candidate.
According to the summary assessment within the consolidated plan, the housing stock is limited especially for those earning less than 80% of the area’s median income, which is about $82,000 a year for a family of four. It is extremely limited for people who take home less than 30% of the AMI.
“The plan renovates rental housing but fails to add inventory despite goal of ‘Expand and preserve affordable rental housing,” Sullivan said in an email to FLORIDA TODAY. “The county owns vacant land for affordable housing, that could be leveraged and developed in private/public partnerships under a County owned Community Land Trust. Instead of selling housing with unpaid taxes, why not make them available for low-income housing?”
One person who has read the plan is Kristin Lortie, a community advocate, who copied FLORIDA TODAY on her comments regarding the draft.
“The website location is not easy to locate or user friendly,” she wrote. “Please review the Brevard website location to see if an individual can easily navigate it to determine how to participate, and even which of the three attachments is under review as it is not labeled that it is for public comment.”
“The plan outcomes show a miniscule impact for the goals stated in the plan and the dollars allocated, and no planning that will markedly address the needs,” Lortie wrote in the comments. “Yet the introduction states in the introduction that ‘This Consolidated Plan is wholly focused on addressing the needs of low- and moderate-income households.’”
The public has until July 5 to provide their input on a form contained on the website. Alternatively, people can submit their comments via email to Natasha Jones or Linda Graham.
Ralph Chapoco is government and politics watchdog reporter. You can reach Chapoco at rchapoco@floridatoday.com and follow him on Twitter @rchapoco.
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This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Plan to build affordable housing units 'miniscule' in comparison to need, a commenter wrote
