Ten developers explore reopening Sigsbee Park affordable housing

BY PRU SOWERS

KONK LIFE STAFF WRITER

Ten companies showed up July 12 for a walk-through of the shuttered Sigsbee Park Annex military housing development, showing an unexpectedly high level of interest in reopening 166 rental townhouses that could help reduce the shortage of affordable housing in Key West.

Trice Denny, public affairs officer for Naval Air Station Key West, said the 10 contractors toured four different styles of townhouses on the U.S. Navy-owned island about a half mile north of Key West. The contractors then regrouped in the afternoon to ask questions about the project, which could include renovation and redevelopment of the 166 units as well as managing the rental property once it is reopened to military personnel and their families.

The questions and answers will be posted on-line in an industry forum open to interested developers, who have until Aug 14 to respond with ideas for how the property can be reopened and operated. The feedback will then be used by the Navy to develop a request for formal bids for the project. Depending on the projected costs, a decision will then be made whether to reopen the property and award a contract.

“The RFI (Request for Information) gives us information to shape the proposal in the future,” Denny said. “It [July 12 walk-through] was a good turnout. It was a good exchange of information.”

The townhouses have been vacant since August 2010 and are in “caretaker” status, meaning they are empty but being maintained. The Navy wants to lease the buildings to a private company that would make any improvements necessary to bring the units back to livable status. The townhouses would then be rented to junior Department of Defense workforce personnel and their families in the lower Florida Keys.

“It benefits the Navy as well as the community in terms of affordable housing,” Denny said

“That’s fine,” said Key West City Manager Jim Scholl about the Sigsbee units being reserved for Navy military and civilian personnel only. “If they’re living there, they’re not living in town.”

The city’s first request to the Navy to consider reactivating Sigsbee Park was turned down in June 2016 after a review of the cost of renovating the apartments was done by the Navy and found to be too expensive. However, Commissioner Sam Kaufman jumpstarted the effort by contacting Congressman Carlos Curbelo’s office asking for help in convincing Navy top brass of the urgency of the issue. While Navy Air Station Key West commanding officer Capt. Steve McAlearney was receptive to the idea of making the apartments available to active-duty military personnel stationed in the area, the decision to reopen Sigsbee Park can only be made by top Navy officials.

Four state representatives, including Curbelo, sent a letter to then-Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus, urging him to bring the 166 units back on-line “without further delay.” With a recent lowering of expensive construction standards set by the Navy – and a new Secretary of the Navy in the Trump Administration – the possibility of reopening Sigsbee was back on the table. Kaufman said he was “encouraged” by the current activity surrounding the Sigsbee Park Annex.

“The city commission has urged the Navy to take quick action on this for the past two years,” he said. “Hundreds of locals could occupy this housing on Sigsbee thereby opening other much needed residential units in Key West and the surrounding lower keys.”

“Having 10 different interests show up [for the walk-through] is a good sign. Once we get the proposals back, that’s where we’ll really know,” said Denny about a final thumbs up/thumbs down to reopening Sigsbee. “It’s a good start. It’s a really good start.”

Approximately 5,500 active duty and civilian personnel and their dependents or family members currently live in the lower Keys.

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