IMMOKALEE, Fla. – Affordable housing isn’t easy to find, especially for working families in Immokalee, but now sixteen families have a new place to call home.
The smile on Carlos Paiz’s face said it all.
“I’m glad I can finally say that my kids will have their own place where they can be comfortable, run around and make a mess,” he said.
The Immokalee Fair Housing Alliance selected Paiz, his wife and four children as one of 16 families to move into the new affordable housing development.
Eventually, the community will have eight buildings that will provide homes for 128 families. The IFHA said it received grants and people donated the funds for the construction.
Watch Immokalee community correspondent Ella Rhoades’ report below:
“We can’t put it into words,” the Immokalee family is happy about affordable housing
Rent is 30% of household income for each unit. The buildings are Category 5 hurricane resistant and come with air conditioning and new appliances.
Carlos Paiz and his wife Maria grew up in Immokalee, but when they started a family, finding a home became expensive.
Maria Paiz said, “It really means a lot to us that we have a home that we can come to. We can cook. We can, you know, enjoy each other’s company.”
The family of six shared a room in a rented apartment, which is not uncommon in Immokalee.
Six years ago, Dr. Arol Buntzman began building his dream: an affordable housing complex for working-class families like the Paiz family.
“They have to live here. They are exploited. There is not enough decent, safe, affordable housing,” said Dr. Buntzman.
Previous reports on the construction of the complex can be found here.
Seven months after FOX 4 got a tour of the complex, the Paiz family calls it home.
When Dr. Buntzman told Paiz the good news, it was a dream come true for both of them.
“The most important thing for him was that he was able to show his children for the first time that he could care for them as a father,” said Dr. Buntzman.
A weight has been lifted from their shoulders. Three bedrooms, two bathrooms and their own kitchen. Plus, they can now start saving money.
“It means happiness, I mean goals and it means so much to us and it means so much to us that we can’t even put it into words.”
In the town that is my home, the Paiz family finally has a home of their own.
IFHA plans to begin construction on the next building in September, with construction on the third building scheduled to begin later this fall.
