Elevations for Casa Amigos
In late May, BankUnited and Florida Housing Finance Corporation closed loans to Rural Neighborhoods for its newest rental community in Immokalee, FL. Nearly $6M was raised to build 96 SRO beds targeting low-income, H-2a visa worker and agricultural labor housing. Rural continues to serve as a national leader in housing models serving farmworkers and Casa Amigos is a continuation of its shared housing model rolled out in other locales including Ruskin and Florida City. “Florida Housing Finance Corporation has more than 20 years innovation and leadership in serving our state’s farmworkers,” Steven Kirk remarked. “It’s a two-way partnership, and for all that time, each of us have sought ways to adapt to the need and the changing character of the workforce. BankUnited joins in that effort as it seeks ways to better serve its Collier Market.”
The Florida Keys Community Land Trust, a land trust founded on Big Pine Key in the aftermath of Hurricane Irma, became a corporate affiliate of Rural Neighborhoods in recent weeks bringing 4 nationally-recognized cottages to our growing portfolio of 1,796 unit rentals. But it means much more than numbers! This partnership merges FKCLT Founder Maggie Whitcomb’s unprecedented leadership, advocacy and post-storm success to RN’s accomplishments – much of which arose out of the Hurricane Andrew disaster in 1992. Together, our groups hope to spur an affordable housing movement throughout Monroe County. Steven Kirk, President of RN, celebrated the collaboration: “Our approach is finding local partners who truly understand the need in their communities, support their strengths and together, achieve a scale offering greater impact than can be achieved alone. The land trust offers us a proven track record, land banked to build on, and a new tool for our toolbox so we can better achieve affordability.”
Earlier in the year, members of Rural Neighborhood’s sewing group happily agreed to help their community when asked to sew face masks for farmworkers and their families in Immokalee. The group, which started approximately four years ago, meets weekly to learn sewing. Lusvi Perez is the volunteer instructor and enjoys helping members learn a skill they can use to supplement their family’s income.
RN is helping its residents in other ways. Its Homestead campus periodically serves as a COVID test site for residents and surrounding neighbors. RN also received a $60,000 grant from Collier County under the CARES Act. The funds will be used to create PPE kits for residents and purchase sanitization equipment for RN’s Immokalee properties to sanitize common areas as well as apartments at turnover.