This time, Habitat project approved

What a difference three months make. In December, Habitat for Humanity's request for $500,000 to build 20 single-family homes on Martin Luther King Boulevard was turned down on a 2-2 vote.

On Tuesday, four commissioners voted to hand over the half-million, with only Jeff Carlson remaining in opposition to the low-income housing project.

Last time, local banks were waiting to see how the commissioners voted before committing to financing about $1.5 million in construction loans. This time, CEO John Hawthorne had a letter from Jim Clinard of Heartland National Bank, as well as assurances that U.S. Department of Agriculture would arrange mortgages for buyers of the homes that Habitat completes.

Carlson couldn't justify handing tax money to Habitat when taxpayers are having a tough time paying their taxes, and voted against it.

Commissioner Barbara Stewart, who voted no last time, was concerned that by the time the project gets under way, the county may be assessing impact fees again, and that Habitat would have to pay. Even so, she voted yes this time.

The $500,000 could be used to balance the budget, County Administrator Michael Wright confirmed after a question from the audience, but the county would have to either return $500,000 to the state - the money originally came from a low-income housing grant after the hurricanes of 2004-05 - or give it to Habitat and build 20 houses.

It was a budget wash either way. Wright's caveat was that if the 20 homes aren't built and occupied by June 30, 2011, the county could be on the hook to return $500,000, but it would have already given the money to Habitat.

The commissioners, however, were confident in Hawthorne and Habitat's ability to quickly build homes. "I don't anticipate any problems," he said.

The project will generate about $2 million, and all but $400,000 will be spent in the community, Hawthorne said.

Lake Placid Groves

Eight of the 10 audience members who addressed the community Lykes Brothers wants to build north of Lake Placid were either concerned about or against the project, but that didn't affect the commissioners, who voted 5-0 to send the large scale future land use amendment to the state Department of Community Affairs.

Many of those opposed were among the thousands of residents of the subdivisions surrounding Lake Placid Groves. Is there a need for more homes, they asked, and how would big subdivision affect wildlife?

Lykes is proposing to build 4,075 houses and apartments, one million square feet of commercial and industrial space, 150 hotel rooms and an 18-hole golf course on the land already owned by the corporation between U.S. 98 and Lake Placid.

The land is going to be developed anyway, Stewart rationalized. The question is, will the former orange groves become 5-acre farmettes, or a planned community? She chose Lykes.

Vietnam wall

A rolling replica of the Vietnam War Memorial will be at Lakeshore Mall from Nov. 18-21, VFW representative John Vawte told the commission. He asked for volunteer help with setting up, security and packing up after the event.

About $20,000 in donations are needed to pay for the exhibition. More info: DAV Commander Harry Oakley at chiefo@cs.com or 452-5771, or Vawte at jvavfw@yahoo.com or 414-6133.

County audit

NCT Group found three problems with the 2009 audit: material misstatements of the county's account balances, two participant files that did not contain documentation of a $500 contribution in the Home Initiatives Partnership Program, and an incorrect pay rate for an employee in the Small County Road Assistance Program.