The average monthly rent for an 872-square-foot apartment in St. Petersburg is nearly $2,000, and city officials continue subsidizing new developments to mitigate soaring living costs.
While the project is unique, the total public subsidy for each of Deuces Rising’s 24 townhomes is about $800,000. A new report highlights the benefits of handing some of that money directly to low-income families.
The Florida Policy Project released its “Unlocking Potential by Elevating Housing Vouchers” study Wednesday. Former St. Petersburg Sen. Jeff Brandes founded the think tank after leaving office.
“It (the report) basically says we should move money from helping developers to helping people get into market-rate housing, via a voucher program,” Brandes told the Catalyst. “And we lay out why the programs don’t work today, what we could do to improve the programs and why the state needs to show leadership and drive vouchers as a responsible way to house people.”