Habitat for Humanity of Lake-Sumter, after a considerable period of due diligence, has decided to relocate its Veterans Village from Leesburg to Umatilla due to unsustainable project development costs for Workforce Housing for Veterans.
Habitat CEO Kent Adcock reported that a combination of increased development costs, combined with Impact Fees, have forced the affiliate to cut the size of the veteran’s project from 22 houses to 14, and to locate it to a site it has purchased in Umatilla.
Habitat has executed a purchase of The Cottages at Waters Edge, a 14-lot development in Umatilla. The main reason for the relocation is due to the high costs of infrastructure and development. Adcock said the value for the Umatilla site is considerable as it offers “ready to build” lots that have pre-paid impact fees which, when combined with other development costs, amount to a total project savings of over $20,000 per house.
“In order to be a good steward with donor and sponsor dollars, the affiliate has elected to decrease the Villages size while at the same time reducing the cost per unit,” Adcock said.
An added benefit will be the ability to have a Veterans Park & Gardens on Lake Enola located in the Village Subdivision.
“We regret that Leesburg will not be the site for our project, but we want everyone to know that the Veterans Village Project will go forward on the new site in Umatilla,” Adcock said.