PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — Living in the Tampa Bay Area can be expensive. Local organizations said the City of St. Pete is lacking in affordable housing, but soon a new project could help with the issue.
"I can’t do it alone, so I ask the lord to help me," said Madeline Ramirez.
Ramirez is not only praying to make ends meet but also working hard to do so.
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"I try to do with BOGO's, buy-one get-ones, try to look for coupons, that’s how I basically get by…and sometimes I go to the food pantry when things get really rough because will live on applesauce," said Ramirez.
She’s one of many people who are struggling to live in St. Pete.
"Rent is expensive, food is expensive," said Ramirez.
She said there’s a lack of affordable housing in the area and what is available isn’t well-maintained.
"Hopefully, functioning elevators and the A/C breaks down and everything breaks down…so somewhere affordable and that works, and that they maintain, that would be great," said Ramirez.
But soon more affordable housing could be made available. St. Pete City Council is considering allowing voters to decide what to do with nine city-owned lots. The plots of land have been vacant for more than 40 years.
Voters will be able to decide to remove the lots from the city’s charter park and waterfront map…so they can be turned into workforce and affordable housing.
"At the end of the day, these developments, as great as they might be, it’s a drop in the bucket," said William Kilgore with St. Pete Tenants Union.
If approved, 41 housing units, about four family homes and 37 multi-family units would be built on the properties along Burlington Avenue in St. Pete.
Leaders with the St. Pete Tenants Union are looking forward to new affordable housing developments…but said it must be done right.
"Affordable for people who are working, Uber Eats, working as a cashier at Publix, those kind of jobs that are vital jobs, and those are the people who are suffering the most right now," said Kilgore.
Kilgore agrees that any new developments should be functional.
"It should be world class housing, people should be comfortable…that’s another thing, just because you’re poor doesn’t mean we are going to put you in a box somewhere," said Kilgore.
If more affordable housing is built, Ramirez said it will alleviate a lot of stress.
"Between all that, and the housing and maintaining to be able to do things, it gets to you sometimes," said Ramirez.
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