The Community Foundation awards $200,000 to the Immokalee Fair Housing Alliance
The Immokalee Fair Housing Alliance (IFHA) announced today that it has received a $200,000 grant from the Community Foundation of Collier County to assist with the construction of their Immokalee affordable housing community. IFHA has purchased 10 acres of land on Lake Trafford Road in Immokalee and will build 128 safe, affordable rental units for farmworker and other low income families, replacing overpriced, overcrowded, and dilapidated trailers and shacks now serving as housing. The project will also include a neighborhood community center with rooms for pre- and after-school learning, adult education classes, and community meetings. The groundbreaking ceremony was held in November 2021, and work on infrastructure is scheduled for completion this month.
“Thanks to this generous grant and others, we anticipate that the construction of the first two of eight buildings will begin this summer,” said Dr. Arol Buntzman, Board Chair of IFHA. “Our plans call for these buildings to be completed and ready for occupancy by the middle of 2023. Rents will be pegged at no more than 30% of family income, which in many cases is less than half of what families are paying now for substandard properties with persistent mold, nonworking appliances and a lack of air conditioning. Lower rents will free up needed money to buy food, clothing, medicines, and other necessities. The ripple effect will be economic growth and stability for the city of Immokalee.”
As a 501(c)(3), IFHA has no profit motive and will pay limited real estate taxes, so the community will be self-supporting. Fundraising continues for the project. For more information on the IFHA project and to learn how you can help, visit their website at Immokaleefairhousing.org.
About the Community Foundation of Collier County
The Community Foundation of Collier County is a tax-exempt organization established in 1985 to increase private philanthropy in Collier County. The Foundation acts as a charitable giving program and philanthropic partner for donors and as a funder and supporter for non-profits. Learn more at cfcollier.org or call 239-649-5000.
About the Immokalee Fair Housing Alliance
The Immokalee Fair Housing Alliance is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) created in 2018 by a group of concerned citizens who saw the damage done by Hurricane Irma to already substandard trailers and shacks rented by farmworker and other low-income families in Immokalee. The IFHA vision is for these families to have access to secure, affordable, hurricane-resistant rental housing, which will strengthen the community by fostering health, education, dignity and financial stability. The organization has embarked on a project to create community awareness and raise funds for a 128 rental unit complex in Immokalee.