Roughly 10 years ago, Bishop Dewane met with affordable housing advocates on Diocese-owned land that is now the site of the St Peter Claver Place Apartments. He said their goal was to bring additional low-cost housing to the community.
Years later, Hurricane Ian created the need for housing relief and served as a urgent, direct catalyst to obtain federal funding for rebuilding in Lee County.
“Prices of material, prices of property go up, but wages don’t go up the same way, so that’s a problem. This is a crisis we have,” described District 2 Commissioner and Vice Chariman Cecil Pendergrass, who cited his personal request for disaster relief to President Biden, while witnessing the devastation after Hurricane Ian…