Dignitaries from the City of Lakeland and Polk County gathered this week to celebrate the groundbreaking of an 84-unit affordable housing complex to serve the homeless and families in need of affordable housing. Blue Sky Communities is developing Swan Lake Village, the $20 million complex on Griffin Road, in partnership with Community Assisted & Supported Living, Inc. (CASL).
The new development should be complete within a year and the second phase of the project already has tentative funding.
At the groundbreaking, President and CEO of Blue Sky Communities Sean Wilson thanked the state for its funding through the William A. Sedowsky Affordable Housing Trust Fund, which contributed $4 million to the project. Additionally, the City of Lakeland and Polk County provided over $400,000 and $500,000 in impact fee waivers, respectively.
The City of Lakeland also provided a loan of federal home funds, for which Wilson expressed his commitment to responsible use. “There are a lot of hoops and hurdles for government funding,” Wilson said. “We want to renew our pledge to be good stewards of the federal funds.”
Addressing the complex problem of homelessness is a big focus of this project, according to Wilson. “Homeless people face mental anguish that complicates their lives and also pushes people out of cities and towns,” said Wilson. “Those are some of the real-life impacts on housing problems and homeless and we want to address that.”
Lakeland Mayor Bill Mutz echoed that sentiment. “Homes are the footer for everything else that makes life stable. This is very, very exciting for the City of Lakeland and a project and partnership I hope we’re able to expand as we go along.” The project is about changing lives, he said. “That’s what matters most. Lives are one family at a time, being specific about what can be changed.”
A livestream of the event can be viewed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WILyThACoSU.
