The need is for deed-restricted affordable rentals. Start calling it that and realize that the only way the City can control rentals, short of instituting rent controls, is to either build and maintain the units themselves, or partner with developers and maintain ownership of the land. The County has made it clear that it is not selling off any more public land. The City is clear on the need to maintain ownership of what precious little land it has left. Hopefully the School Board will follow suit and do a public-private partnership with the Administration site beyond Porter Place Place,near the Coast Guard, or build units themselves and partner with KWHA to maintain them. Companies already exist who will do the developing and building as well as supply the maintenance in return for the government agency subordinating its interest on the land to enable the developer to more easily get a construction loan.
The rent schedules would be restricted to the same chart already in use by the City and would allow only low income and median income units buiilding permits. The contracts can be structured so that the City shares in the profits by charging an appropriate lease fee on the land. Nobody is going to get rich because the permits can only be issued for low and median, and developers claim they cannot make money without a mix of moderate income units, even if one has “free land”. Thus the County accepted
Toppino’s plan for its private property with 70% moderate income units. In that case, the claim that “you must have moderates” in the mix in order to make a profit may be factually correct because of the cost of infrastructure where there is none, i.e., water lines, sewer lines, electric lines, roads and sidewalks.
It is less likely in the case of Key West where all those things are nearby and the only three parcels left ,owned by the City, Mosquito Control/Easter Seals, Truman Waterfront, and Poinciana have those utilities already at hand.
Key West is not the only tourist City finding itself with a need to be in the “housing” business, but I fear that may not sink in with everyone until and unless we start referring to it as a need to build or control deed-restricted rental units, and there just aren’t that many opportunities.
The need is for deed-restricted affordable rentals. Start calling it that and realize that the only way the City can control rentals, short of instituting rent controls, is to either build and maintain the units themselves, or partner with developers and maintain ownership of the land. The County has made it clear that it is not selling off any more public land. The City is clear on the need to maintain ownership of what precious little land it has left. Hopefully the School Board will follow suit and do a public-private partnership with the Administration site beyond Porter Place Place,near the Coast Guard, or build units themselves and partner with KWHA to maintain them. Companies already exist who will do the developing and building as well as supply the maintenance in return for the government agency subordinating its interest on the land to enable the developer to more easily get a construction loan.
The rent schedules would be restricted to the same chart already in use by the City and would allow only low income and median income units buiilding permits. The contracts can be structured so that the City shares in the profits by charging an appropriate lease fee on the land. Nobody is going to get rich because the permits can only be issued for low and median, and developers claim they cannot make money without a mix of moderate income units, even if one has “free land”. Thus the County accepted
Toppino’s plan for its private property with 70% moderate income units. In that case, the claim that “you must have moderates” in the mix in order to make a profit may be factually correct because of the cost of infrastructure where there is none, i.e., water lines, sewer lines, electric lines, roads and sidewalks.
It is less likely in the case of Key West where all those things are nearby and the only three parcels left ,owned by the City, Mosquito Control/Easter Seals, Truman Waterfront, and Poinciana have those utilities already at hand.
Key West is not the only tourist City finding itself with a need to be in the “housing” business, but I fear that may not sink in with everyone until and unless we start referring to it as a need to build or control deed-restricted rental units, and there just aren’t that many opportunities.
Maureen Bramlage