In St. Petersburg, Fla., a redevelopment budget for Fiscal Year 2027 is now in place, but many longtime homeowners are less focused on future projects than on whether the funding will help them remain in the houses they already own.
New affordable units continue to move through the pipeline, even as residents in older homes say repair bills are getting harder to put off and harder to pay for.
Here’s what to know
After St. Pete City Council signed off on the Fiscal Year 2027 Community Redevelopment Area budget for South St. Petersburg, much of the spending plan remained centered on housing-related work. According to WFLA, the budget includes $15.1 million for Housing and Neighborhood Revitalization, $11.6 million for the Affordable Housing Redevelopment Loan Program, and $180,000 for the Housing Rehabilitation Assistance program.
The issue is personal for Mahalia “Blue” Feliu, a South St. Petersburg homeowner who has lived in her house for 40 years. She told WFLA she intends to stay, but said the property has repairs that can no longer wait. “The ‘some point’ has passed. It’s due,” she said…