A new plan for residential and commercial development has just been proposed for downtown Palmetto.  The full city block of  4th & 5th Streets and 10th & 9th Avenues is stated to be a project to happen over the next 5 years.

The project calls 6 phases with a combination of 28 store fronts and 88 one and two bedroom residential affordable housing units that will range in price of $160,000 to $200,000.

The residential units will be built on top of the commercial store fronts and will have a Key West/Florida style buildings with tin roofs, courtyards, benches and parking.

The plan is said to also include a possible $50,000 credit to any City employees that want to purchase a unit. 

So, I think this is a great idea to build these unique types of buildings in Palmetto and give people the option to live and work close to Downtown.  However, $160,000 to $200,000 price range?  C'mon already!  When are they REALLY going to build some REAL affordable housing in the area?  You know, something along the lines of $125,000?  That's affordable housing by many people's standards, especially people that work for the City or County.  There are plenty of single family homes currently on the market listed between $160,000 and $200,000, so someone please tell me how offering a $160,000 to $200,000 condo as affordable housing makes any sense?  And why buy a condo for the same price you can buy a single family home for?  Unless you want something maintenance free, most people would rather have a single family home than a condo if they can get it for the same price.

I don't understand the logic some of these developers think they are using.

Source:  North River News