by SC Reporter Emilie Alfino
A nearly $10 million grant from Housing and Urban Development is pending for the construction of Community Housing & Resources’ 39-unit Riverview II development on Periwinkle Way.
HUD’s grant terms would open the development to anyone in Lee County, but the Sanibel City Council passed an ordinance on March 31 requiring applicants to meet conditions favoring Sanibel workers.
Applicant will ensure that each resident of the development will be:
i) An employee or owner on Sanibel of a business or other organization with a principal place of business on Sanibel;
ii) An employee or owner on Captiva of a business or other organization with a principal place of business on Sanibel;
iii) An individual who has previously worked on Sanibel for 20 years and who is retired or disabled.
Council member Laura DeBruce, who made the motion on March 31 to include these conditions, emphasized that affordable housing must be reserved for those working on Sanibel. Council member Holly Smith echoed this sentiment, saying, “We have to make sure this is for people who work here.”
It appears, at least for now, that HUD says the mandate Sanibel tried to impose is problematic, according to City Attorney John Agnew. He explained that the county’s feedback from HUD is that Sanibel’s conditions exclude a significant pool of people from consideration for housing and may be inconsistent with the Fair Housing Act.
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