Senior public housing expansion remains $4 million short

Four million dollars is the funding gap that stands between Sarasota Housing Authority building 96 new senior affordable housing units. It’s also the barrier to the city of Sarasota gaining 160 needed public parking spaces to serve the Rosemary District and The Bay park nearby.

Having been turned down by the Sarasota County Commission in its latest allocation of Resilient SRQ federal grant funding, SHA President and CEO William Russell was back before the City Commission on April 7 hoping, but not directly asking, for largesse beyond the the city's prior commitment of $8 million toward the third phase of McCown Towers, a five-story building that would envelop a parking parking structure partially owned by the city.

“it's literally $4 million to make a $50 million project go,” Russell said. “You guys have always been a great partner, so I just wanted to let you all know we're short.”

Photo by Andrew Warfield

There remains some disaster recovery funds to be granted by the county, and Russell said he plans to return to the county board to request at least some of the needed money toward the capital stack necessary to move forward with the project. 

“The reason we want is because we own the land. We have the funding lined up,” Russell said.

At the corner of Cocoanut Avenue and Boulevard of the Arts, SHA plans to build the expansion atop a surface parking lot. Located one block east of The Bay park and within the growing Rosemary District, the project would help solve the city’s shortage of parking in the area to serve both the park and the neighborhood. However, with $8 million already committed, a 50% increase in funding was too much for the commissioners to consider.

City-owned parking is funded by bonds intended to be repaid with revenues the parking generates. At its March 23 meeting, commissioners approved changes to the parking program as revenues were falling short of covering the cost of personnel, maintenance and debt service of paid parking in downtown and St. Armands. 

And at $12 million for 160 parking spaces, that’s $75,000 each, well in excess of the average cost to build structured parking. To cover that, rates would have to be increased on street parking in the area.

“The numbers that I've seen are between $35,000 and maybe $55,000 on the high end,” Parking Division General Manager Broxton Harvey told commissioners. 

“That's sort of what complicates us funding something like this from a parking perspective,” replied Vice Mayor Kathy Kelley Ohlrich.

In practical terms, the cost per space would be even higher. Finance Director Kelly Strickland told commissioners interest paid on $8 million would bring the total cost to $12 million over the 20-year debt service repayment.

As for $12 million in bond debt if the city were to grant SHA's wish for an additional $4 million?

“That would be $19 million,” Strickland said.

“Then we’re going in at about $120,000 a spot,” said Commissioner Jen Ahearn-Koch.

Interim City Manager Jennifer Jorgensen said the costs of doing business — to issue bonds, miscellaneous fees and interest — are not generally factored into equation when it comes to bond counsel approval, although upwards of $75,000 per space would likely not receive endorsement.

“We don't put those into it because every parking garage is going to have those same costs,” Jorgensen said.

Another round of County Commission discussion about remaining Resilient SRQ funds will potentially take place later this month, Russell said, although he has received no notification of it appearing on meeting agenda. If it does, Russell will take with him a letter of support from the City Commission signed by Mayor Debbie Trice

“We really do want and need the additional parking, but I don't think that we can see our way clear for another $4 million,” Trice said. “ But we're 100% behind you in whatever we can do to help you find somebody else to pony it up.”