Fort Myers City Council members have approved the city’s acquisition of 11.24 acres in the city’s Dunbar section to create a 26-unit community of affordable homes.
Buyers will get a big break on the transaction because the city will retain ownership of the land, reducing the cost the buyers who would otherwise purchase the property.
Sitting as the city Community Redevelopment Agency, council members agreed that a planned $700,000 affordable housing investment, on land the city has agreed to buy on Jaylen Watkins Street in Dunbar, would be the site for the homes. City ownership of the land is expected to reduce the cost of building the homes from builders, since the contractors will not pay for the land.
The 26 homes would be built for sale by the Fort Myers Community Redevelopment Agency, to residents who qualify as low- to moderate-income.
“We are committed to being a part of the creation of affordable housing and believe that if we are playing a major role and not stepping aside, that we can see this through,” CRA Executive Directory Michele Hylton-Terry said. “It is not going to be easy, probably nothing really worth doing is; there is a commitment in place to make that happen and that is what we will try to do.”