A region-wide survey to gather information on what Southwest Florida residents perceive as their most pressing needs identified affordable housing and homelessness as top concerns.
These concerns were echoed by On the Table SWFL, an initiative that addresses social issues across Lee, Collier, Charlotte, Hendry and Glades counties, held a forum on March 30th where 4,000 residents spoke. They were brought to light after people met in their respective districts to discuss social issues and solutions.
About a quarter of participants completed an anonymous survey to rank the issues facing their county.
OTT partnered with Florida Gulf Coast University to analyze data based on 811 respondents ages 19-87. Affordable housing and homelessness together accounted for 70% of the respondent’s top priorities to address.
Southwest Florida has been at the forefront of rising housing costs since shortly after the pandemic was identified, and the already surging homeless situation became even more significant after Hurricane Ian devastated the region in September 2022. It became a concern.
Participants also submitted anonymous comments.
- “Many of the issues facing local residents (housing insecurity, health care, education, transportation, employment, etc.) are directly related to the need for affordable housing,” one resident wrote.
- “People need to be able to work and live here, and affordable housing and mental health care are key to productivity and social health,” another wrote.
Mental health and substance abuse, health care access and cost, and good-paying jobs and economic development ranked next as needing urgent attention.
Lindsey Tuyette, vice president of community engagement at the Collier Community Foundation, wasn’t surprised that affordable housing was a top priority.
“I’m hearing that people who have lived here all their lives are being priced out of the area,” she says.
Touchette added that the city of Collier is facing a recruitment crisis for health care workers and other essential workers as housing prices reduce access to health care.
“These are very intertwined issues,” she said. “If you’re working on one thing, you’re working on something else.”
Collier is currently implementing projects to create more viable housing. One such project is expected to break ground this fall and transform a portion of the now-defunct Golden Gate Golf Course into affordable housing for essential workers. Rent is capped at 30% of each renter’s income.
Amy Huddleston, director of strategic partnerships at the Charlotte Community Foundation, said housing costs are so high that many Charlotte residents are “on the brink of homelessness.”
The county completed an 88-unit affordable housing complex late last year. Jacaranda Place, located at the north end of Loveland Boulevard, offers discounted rent for low-income residents.
“We’re filling up quickly, if not already at capacity,” Huddleston said. [affordable housing] in our community. ”
“We want to work with community partners to make substantive change and reflect as many community voices as possible,” she said, referring to other community foundations and nonprofits. Stated.
The first OTT was founded in 2019 and hosted by Collaboratory, SWFL’s problem-solving nonprofit. Although scheduled to be held regularly, the effort was suspended for three years due to the pandemic and then Hurricane Ian.
“But its significance is that this was even more important for the healing and recovery of the region and for the problems that were brought to light that were exacerbated by the storm,” said Noel Casagrande, communications lead for the joint research institutes. Told.
“We also know, given what we learned and who participated in 2019, that there was a movement towards more diverse representation this time around,” she added.
The number of respondents this year was three times that of 2019. “However, we know there is still work to do in terms of reaching more of the Hendry and Glades community,” said respondents, who made up 4% of participants.
More than 6,000 apartments are being built in Fort Myers, said Amanda White, vice president of government relations and research for the Florida Apartment Association. The average rent is $1,900 and 7% of apartments are vacant.
“These new units are likely to increase vacancy and moderate future rent growth rates,” she said.
Naples’ apartment vacancy rate “has plummeted to 4% in 2021,” White said. However, 1,700 new apartment complexes are currently under construction, with 910 completed within the last year.
“To put this in perspective, Naples’ apartment inventory has increased by 2,200 units over the past three years, which is a 30% increase in overall inventory,” she said.
The average rent in Naples is $2,280 and the vacancy rate is 8.7%.
1,779 apartments are under construction in Punta Gorda. The average rent is $1,910 and the vacancy rate is 14%.
Max Stein, assistant professor of anthropology at FGCU, was the lead researcher in analyzing the survey data.
“We wanted On the Table to be a forum where everyone felt like they could sit down and talk about what’s important to them,” he said.
Two-thirds of survey respondents were women, and 65% were between 41 and 76 years old. Of the respondents, 78% identified as white, 11% as Hispanic, and 7% as African American.
Participants were asked about their five-year outlook for how they would address social issues in SWFL. Stein said people who fall outside the majority category “tend to be a little more optimistic.”
“I think this really reflects the Community Foundation’s goal of elevating diversity of perspective and its importance,” he said. “Because the more voices you hear, the more you learn about your community.”
Issues in the top 10 included hunger and food insecurity, environmental issues, and social justice and equality.
“The needs of our region are limitless,” Casagrande said. “The collaboration of community foundations on this project and the commitment of foundations to mobilize action and support the collaboration needed to address the stated priorities is unprecedented.”
The full report can be accessed at https://onthetableswfl.com.
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