Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the 519 La Kirksey topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
CRA OKs Conveyance of 519 LA Kirksey to Habitat for Humanity for Affordable Home
Summary
The Community Redevelopment Agency unanimously approved Resolution 26-17 to convey 519 LA Kirksey to Habitat for Humanity of Greater Palm Beach County for construction of an affordable single-family home built with Seminole Ridge High School students; Habitat said it expects to finish the home by June 30, 2027 and will enforce a 30-year affordability period with a shared-appreciation resale model.
The West Palm Beach Community Redevelopment Agency approved Resolution 26-17 on Monday to convey 519 LA Kirksey to Habitat for Humanity of Greater Palm Beach County for construction of an affordable home.
Robbie Sami, deputy director of the CRA, said 519 LA Kirksey is a vacant parcel north of Palm Beach Lakes Boulevard between 15th and Spruce and was one of four disposition parcels the CRA selected for conveyance in 2025. Sami introduced Tara Ochler, chief operating officer of Habitat for Humanity of Greater Palm Beach County, who provided project details and timeline.
Ochler described the proposed house as roughly 1,300 square feet with two to three bedrooms, two bathrooms, hurricane-impact windows and ENERGY STAR appliances. She said the home will be built in partnership with Seminole Ridge High School’s Whites Construction Academy, in which students assemble housing sections in a workshop that are then transported and set on site. “This home is over 1,300 square feet,” Ochler said, describing the layout and construction model.
Habitat will open applications for qualified buyers the week of the meeting and will target residents who live or work in West Palm Beach. Ochler said Habitat issues the mortgage for buyers, typically a 30-year, 0% mortgage that includes taxes and homeowners insurance, and that Habitat maintains a 30-year affordability restriction and a right of first refusal on any resale. She described a shared-appreciation model for resale that returns to the homeowner the principal paid plus a portion of accrued equity based on time in the home; Habitat would complete an appraisal and apply the equity-share calculation if it repurchases the property.
Board members asked operational questions. Commissioner Sylvester asked who pays for windstorm insurance; Ochler said the homeowner carries insurance as part of the mortgage payment. President Peduzzi and others asked whether fee-simple ownership transfers and how resale pricing is set; Ochler said the shared-appreciation model begins at year one and that the homeowner accrues some equity. Commissioners praised the school partnership and Habitat’s local work.
Commissioner Ward moved to approve Resolution 26-17; the motion was seconded and carried unanimously.
What happens next: staff said the other parcels are expected to return to the board in coming months and Habitat will begin its homeowner application and education process immediately after conveyance approval.
