Workshop Results in Community Priorities for Affordable Housing

Armed with a list of priorities established by the community, the City of Key West is gathering the large amount of public input from a recent affordable housing workshop to craft a request for proposals (RFP) addressing the 3.2 acre parcel at the Truman Waterfront.

After hearing several presentations, the community participants broke out into small groups. Their resulting top five priorities are: Home ownership, opportunities for rentals, multi-family housing, a Black educators museum, and connectivity to Bahama Village.

The workshop, held on May 13^th at the Douglass Gym, was specifically aimed at gathering input from the immediate vicinity to better understand what the community envisions at the site. The acreage was set aside when the Truman Waterfront Park was established in order to provide a benefit to the adjacent Bahama Village.

Other input from participants included a discussion of whether or not the old diesel plant should be included in the affordable housing plans. Many participants felt that the environmental cleanup required of the abandoned building might slow the development of the 3.2 acres. They suggested the RFP should include language that, if the diesel plant is included, the development would be phased with the 3.2 acres coming first.

From here, the City will write the request for proposals, which will need to be approved by both the Bahama Village Redevelopment Advisory Committee and the City Commission.

Interim City Manager Patti McLauchlin urges the workshop participants and the community to continue to stay involved in the process by attending these follow up meetings.