The Lee Board of County Commissioners voted on Tuesday to commit to a $500,000 zero-interest loan to support the development of 78 multi-family units in North Fort Myers for extremely low- and low-income residents.
This five-year term loan, sourced from the Affordable Housing Trust Fund, will be provided to Autumn Palm Lee, LLC. The funds will be used to construct the units on a 4.85-acre site at 4941 Bayshore Road, North Fort Myers.
Autumn Palm Lee, LLC was selected through a competitive solicitation process. The loan will support their application to the Florida Housing Finance Corporation for Housing Credit Financing for Affordable Housing Developments in Medium and Small Counties. The loan will be utilized if the project is awarded Florida Housing Finance Corporation tax credits.
All 78 units will be designated for rental by households with extremely low incomes—at or below 33% of the area median income—or low incomes—at or below 60% of the area median income—for a compliance period of 99 years.
If the project does not receive funding from Florida Housing for RFA2024-201, Lee County’s commitment to provide Local Government Areas of Opportunity Funding will be void. This commitment demonstrates local government support, which gives the project preference in the FHFC’s competitive application process.
The anticipated construction cost exceeds $26.8 million, with construction slated to begin in Fall 2025. Lee County’s $500,000 loan constitutes less than 2.5% of the total project financing.
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