So far this month, we’ve introduced you to Page 15, a non-profit focused on literacy amongst neighborhood children, recommended the cornbread and collards at Nikki’s Place, and shared a 72-year Parramore staple, Palmer Feed where locals can purchase live animals, gardening and other farming necessities.
We then asked you what you wanted to know about Parramore and once the questions were put up for a vote, you told us the question you were most interested in was Carolyn Capern’s question:
“What will the land trust by Central Florida Foundation do to make sure that longtime Parramore residents can afford to stay in their homes as downtown continues to grow there?”
We reached out to Mark Brewer, President and CEO of Central Florida Foundation and this is what he had to say.
“The Central Florida Regional Housing Trust (CFRHT) is one piece of the puzzle in addressing the broader issue of housing affordability. The focus will be on income levels that range from low to workforce to building housing that can house the most vulnerable to those who are the drivers of a community- police officers, teachers, nurses, people who work in tourism and hotels, service jobs and retail. We need a lot more housing inventory at all levels to allow for a place for everyone. The CFRHT is an ingredient, but we also must create capital to assist builders to cover the gaps of building housing that fits the needs of the market inside or outside of the housing trust.
While parts of Parramore will be covered by the housing trust, it’s not meant to or is it capable of acquiring all the real estate in an entire community. The launch of the CFRHT in Parramore includes the acquisition of 83 housing units that are currently being renovated and updated while holding rents to affordable rates. In the near future, we plan to develop single-family homes for homeowners in Parramore.
The Central Florida Regional Housing Trust (CFRHT) was designed by a group of community leaders convened by the Central Florida Foundation that included the City of Orlando, Orange County, developers, builders, bankers, nonprofit housing providers, UCF, Valencia, and subject matter experts from planning and urban development, and resident representatives from the neighborhoods of Parramore. All the Counties in the region, along with the Orlando Realtor’s Foundation released planning strategies in 2016, 17, and 18 that suggested a community land trust model would be a solution that could accelerate the development of attainable housing. A land trust allows a homeowner to own the construction and improvements above the real estate and rent the real estate in perpetuity. In a transaction that is similar to buying a condo, the dirt is not part of the mortgage, allowing owners to build equity in the structure, but not suffer from a downturn in the market. Renters also have more favorable rental rates. Subsidized housing is more easily built and managed, allowing everybody access to an affordable place to live.
The CFRHT could ultimately impact hundreds or thousands of people across Orange, Osceola, and Seminole Counties. It is designed to help the jurisdictions identify and to receive real estate that can be developed into mixed-income, multi-family, and single-family homeownership and rental properties. We expect to build mixed-income family housing over the next 3-5 years.”
Learn more about Parramore’s history (or by visiting the Wells’Built Museum), UCF’s arrival to the community, and Parramore small businesses to support.