Collier commissioners OK North Naples housing development that includes affordable units

Despite pushback from neighbors, Collier County commissioners on Tuesday approved a North Naples housing development that will include affordable units, marking a step toward the county’s goal of providing more such homes.

Builder Stock Development has been asking for rezoning and an amendment to the county’s growth management plan to allow for up to 304 multi-family rental units on 35 acres at the southeast corner of Veterans Memorial Boulevard and Livingston Road. 

The project, known as Allura, has been opposed by some nearby residents who say it will make traffic problems worse and doesn’t fit in with the surrounding communities. The proposal was dealt a blow last month when Collier County planning commissioners voted 3-2 against recommending approval of the project.

On Tuesday, however, following hours of discussion and testimony, county commissioners unanimously approved the developer’s request after the builder tweaked aspects of the plan, agreeing to keep roughly 10 percent of the apartment complex, or 31 units, affordable for 30 years.

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The move, Commissioner Penny Taylor said, hopefully will make the county’s big employers — including Arthrex and the NCH Healthcare System, the latter of which had an executive speak in support of the project — “understand we’re serious about making sure we have affordable housing in Collier County.”

“It’s the beginning of the future,” Taylor said.

The 31 units will be rented at discounted rates to individuals or families who make 80 percent or less of the area median income. For a one-person household, that means an income of $43,900 annually, according to county staff. For a two-person household, it would be $50,150; and for a three-person household, it would be $56,400.

“It has to stay available until you find somebody,” said Rich Yovanovich, a land-use attorney who represents the developer. “And it has to be a commitment for 30 years.”

Currently, there are 25 units available countywide that are in the 80 percent and below income bracket, said Cormac Giblin, the county's housing and grant development manager.

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Although the developer did not use the county’s affordable housing density bonus program, Giblin said in an email Wednesday, the income-restricted units will follow the same rules, qualification, monitoring and time frame as those built under the program. The voluntary program allows developers to build more homes if they include affordable units.

“Hopefully, the success of this development will serve as a positive example about how affordable units can be included in future projects throughout Collier County,” Giblin wrote.

Keith Gelder, Stock Development's vice president of land, said the project will provide "much needed housing options for the county’s major employers and essential service personnel." Nurses, teachers and police officers or firefighters, among others, are considered essential service personnel.

"We are excited to have the opportunity to build a high quality project in North Naples, while also addressing a critical need for affordable housing in Collier County," Gelder wrote in an email.

Commissioners on Tuesday also pointed out that what could be built at the site under current rules could be worse for surrounding communities than Allura. On a portion of the 35 acres, 107 multifamily dwelling units could be built currently at a height that would exceed the Allura development, which is limited to three stories, representatives for the builder said.

“I think that this development is going to be a lot better than what would potentially be there if we didn’t approve this,” said Commissioner Burt Saunders.

But the project, as it had been at previous meetings, was met with fierce opposition from neighbors, many of whom dressed in red and packed the commission chambers. 

Nancy Huntt, who lives in nearby Barrington Cove, said the development will have “a negative impact on the public infrastructure, now and in the future.”

“Traffic now is an issue,” she said. “Allura development will only intensify it.”

Former Naples City Attorney Bob Pritt, representing the Mediterra Community Association, said the project was too dense at 304 units at that location. 

“It’s too much on too little property, buildable ground, for a good quality of life,” he told commissioners.

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A few speakers, however, spoke in support of the project, including Phil Dutcher, chief operating officer for the NCH Healthcare System.

The hospital, one of the largest employers in the county, often struggles with housing for its nurses, and physicians who come to Collier to participate in a training program, Dutcher told commissioners. Many employees live in Lee County because they can’t afford homes in Collier, he added.

“So NCH in general is supportive of any workforce housing projects in our community,” he said. “It’s vital to us to continue to recruit the quality professionals we need for the health care field.”

Connect with the reporter at patrick.riley@naplesnews.com or on Twitter @PatJRiley.