Pinellas County Government issued the following announcement on October 29.
Groundbreaking for 50 new affordable homes in St. Pete Nov. 5
Officials from Pinellas County and the City of St. Petersburg will mark the latest step forward in providing homes everyone can afford at a groundbreaking event for 50 new units south of downtown on Friday, Nov. 5.
The nearly $17 million project is being developed by Volunteers of America of Florida, a faith-based, human services organization with a local office in St. Petersburg.
Innovare will provide apartment homes with rents restricted to those who earn less than 60 percent of the area’s median income, with a dozen units set aside for those with very low incomes.
Pinellas County Commissioners will be joined by representatives from Volunteers of America and other agencies for the groundbreaking event, which will take place at 9:30 a.m. at the construction site, 850 5th Ave. S., St. Petersburg.
Since 2020, the Pinellas County Commission has committed $23.4 million toward eight new developments that will set aside 884 units restricted to affordable rents.
The County’s Penny for Pinellas Affordable Housing Program supported $1 million in land acquisition costs for Innovare with additional financial support from the City of St. Petersburg and the Florida Housing Finance Corporation.
Innovare represents one of the first to break ground in a new round of developments funded by the voter-approved Penny sales tax, which will support around $80 million in affordable housing over the next decade.
Pinellas County is also joining forces with Forward Pinellas, and the cities of St. Petersburg, Clearwater, Largo and Pinellas Park in a countywide housing compact that will outline a common set of goals and policies to spur more affordable housing. The compact is expected to be ratified by early 2022.
The County’s long-term goal is to build a coalition of municipalities, agencies, developers and other local leaders committed to a common vision for addressing one of the biggest challenges facing the community today.
In addition to the Penny for Pinellas fund, the County supports housing affordability with other local, state and federal funds providing rental and home ownership opportunities through partnerships with agencies and developers.
Over the past decade, the County has supported dozens of new affordable housing developments that have added thousands of homes.
To learn more about Pinellas County’s approach to affordable housing, visit: www.homesforpinellas.org.
Learn more about Volunteers of America of Florida here: www.voaflorida.org
Original source can be found here.
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