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Council declines immediate vote to raise Affordable Housing Trust Fund; item deferred to budget workshop
Summary
Councilmembers heard public appeals from affordable‑housing advocates and developers to raise the city’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund from $750,000 to $1,000,000, but a motion to increase the allocation was withdrawn so staff could present budget details at an upcoming workshop.
The Fort Myers City Council heard multiple public pleas on March 17 to increase the city’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund from $750,000 to $1,000,000 for fiscal year 2025–26, but the council did not take an immediate vote and asked staff to return with budget options.
Patricia Zimmerman, a board member of Lee Interfaith for Empowerment, told council members that 16 developers with city properties were ready to begin construction on multifamily projects that would house workers who earn below area median income. “There is no more important time to support all aspects of affordable and workforce housing than right now,” Zimmerman said.
Dottie Morrison, chairperson of LIFE’s affordable housing committee, said the Trust Fund has helped more than 200 families with rental vouchers but warned that the fund’s principal purpose is to support the production of new multifamily units that house workers near where they work. She urged the council to approve the increase, saying, “Approving the increase to the trust fund to $1,000,000 will build up the fund and enable you to say yes” to projects that rely on federal awards and gap funding.
Councilmember Baugh moved to increase the Trust Fund allocation from $750,000 to $1,000,000. After a short discussion, and at the manager’s and finance director’s request to have more complete revenue and expenditure projections, Baugh withdrew the motion and asked that the proposal be discussed in the city’s upcoming budget workshop. City staff agreed to present financing scenarios and timing options at the workshop.
What happens next: Staff will include the proposed Trust Fund increase and several funding scenarios in the budget workshop materials scheduled for March 31, 2025, and the council may revisit the request during budget deliberations.
The public comments accompanying the item stressed urgency: speakers said federal funds could be lost if developers cannot secure gap financing, and they pressed the council to put money “skin in the game” to preserve millions in HUD and CDBG awards.
