Local

Parramore's new affordable housing may not be affordable after all

ORLANDO, Fla. — A would-be affordable housing project in Parramore could end up being pretty expensive for the renters it's meant to help.

The developer of the almost-finished Amelia Court project at the corner of Amelia Street and Parramore Avenue blames a competing project – currently a parking lot in Pine Hills – for getting millions in federal tax breaks doled out by Florida’s Housing Finance Corporation.

Last month, Channel 9 reported Judge Chad Alvaro of Florida's Ninth Circuit decided that Orange County illegally awarded funding to the Pine Hills project—a senior living facility at Silver Star Road and Pine Hills Road named Hawthorne Park—without going through a public bidding process.

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Judge Alvaro issued a temporary injunction against Orange County which prevented the awarding of so-called SHIP funds and the designation of Hawthorne Park as a local priority project, the combination of which made the development eligible for the federal tax credits at issue in an ongoing lawsuit.

A recent motion filed in that suit accuses Wendover Housing, the developers of Pine Hills’ Hawthorne Park, of going to the publicly-owned FHFC and successfully arguing leaders there weren’t bound by the local court’s ruling. FHFC’s board ultimately decided to award the tax credits to Wendover and, by extension, the people of Pine Hills. The corporation’s spokesperson had no comment Wednesday on allegations that the board had broken its own policy by awarding tax credits to a project lacking the requisite local government support.

If it stands, the decision will force Parramore’s Amelia Court to be rented at market rate, which could be too expensive for the people living in the area.

>> Previous coverage: Orange County affordable housing projects compete for grant money

On Wednesday, Tucker Byrd, the attorney making that argument on behalf of the Parramore project’s Atlantic Housing told Channel 9 he’s asking Judge Alvaro to hold Wendover in contempt of court for violating an order Byrd believes should have effectively knocked the Pine Hills project out of the running for the tax credits.

"It's like if this were football and there's a play, and there's a flag thrown for holding and the other team scored and they continue to celebrate and charge off the field like they won," said Tucker Byrd, attorney for the Parramore developer.

>> Previous coverage: Judge could decide whether Pine Hills or Parramore gets affordable housing subsidies

An official with Wendover, the developer behind the Pine Hills project, sent the following statement Wednesday to Channel 9:

Although Florida Housing was not subject to the temporary injunction, Florida Housing was immediately made aware of the injunction order and decided to go forward with the award, leaving any challenge to the administrative appeal process.  Any suggestion that Wendover hid the issue or convinced Florida Housing to take inappropriate action is entirely inaccurate, and Wendover looks forward to arguing its position further in the litigation and administrative process.

- David King, legal counsel for Wendover Housing Partners

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