Florida Construction News staff writer
The Gainesville City Commission has allocated $1.4 million for construction of new affordable homes in the Heartwood community off Southeast Eighth Avenue. Funding will come from the Gainesville Community Reinvestment Area (GCRA).
The commission also approved modifications to Heartwood restrictions to allow the new homes to be built on 16 city-owned lots using a community land trust (CLT) model.
“We have seen great success with the land trust model,” Gainesville Mayor Harvey Ward said in a statement. “I believe this is the fastest path to adding more quality, attainable homes in our city.”
Under the city’s CLT program, the homes will remain permanently affordable through deed restrictions that limit both current and future sales to income-qualified buyers. Homeowners enter into a long-term lease on the land, which remains owned by the trust, and must occupy the property.
“Staff have begun accepting applications from affordable housing developers to build the new homes, which are required to be completed by September 2028,” said GCRA Director Rick Smith.
Of the 34 lots in the Heartwood subdivision, 18 homes have been built and sold over the past four years. The remaining parcels have faced challenges due to rising construction costs and high mortgage rates, which have affected buyer demand in recent years.
The CLT program builds on the city’s land-donation initiative launched in 2022, which transferred of 11 vacant lots in the Duval community to Alachua Habitat for Humanity for the construction of affordable, single-family homes.
