Hillsborough County commissioners are deciding this week whether to dip into a local affordable housing fund for other needs.
It's one of many funding decisions that commissioners will finalize when they meet on Thursday to pass a proposed $10.3 billion budget. The upcoming fiscal year for Hillsborough County begins on Oct. 1 and runs through Sept. 30, 2025.
During a Sept. 12 budget hearing, commissioners passed a motion to consider draining the $10 million in affordable housing funds, also known as HOPE funds. Commissioners Pat Kemp, Harry Cohen and Gwen Myers voted against the motion.
The affordable housing funds are named after a grassroots coalition of churches, called the Hillsborough Organization for Progress and Equality, that advocated for the local housing dollars in 2019. Their efforts were enshrined in an ordinance that mandates the county's proposed annual budget includes at least $10 million to fund the program.
To her dismay, HOPE co-president Sheila Simmons Tribble said that Hillsborough County commissioners dipped into the HOPE funds last year in favor of other funding priorities, like repairing aging infrastructure.
"In 2023, we got the first defunding of the affordable housing fund. And that's when the commissioners decided to divert $8 million of that money to go to roads and sidewalks," Tribble said.
Now, Hillsborough County commissioners are considering a similar move ahead of the final budget vote for fiscal year 2025.
Last week, Tribble was one of nearly 80 HOPE members, donning purple shirts, who attended the Sept. 12 budget hearing. Many spoke in opposition of Hillsborough County moving the $10 million away from the affordable housing funds.
"There is a sense of ... disappointment, frustration, but also hope that they will do the right thing for the most vulnerable of our community," said Tampa minister and HOPE member Justin LaRosa.
During the nearly two-hour public comment period, some residents also spoke in favor of the reallocation of affordable housing funds to nonhousing initiatives.
“Why should I pay for other people? There’s federal funds, state funds and the Sadowski fund,” Apollo Beach homeowner Kenddell Perez said.
She called the local government and partnering housing developers “leeches," raising concerns over county property tax revenue being put toward bolstering local affordable housing supply.
The motion to siphon money from the $10 million in HOPE funds toward repairing roads and sidewalks was proposed by Hillsborough County Commissioner Joshua Wostal.
Commissioner Pat Kemp strongly disagreed with the notion of using housing dollars for nonhousing related projects.
“Hearing about all the roads made me think: Maybe we overbuilt. What we haven’t overbuilt is affordable housing,” she said during last Thursday's meeting.
According to the proposed county budget for the coming year, there are $20 million in affordable housing funds committed to existing projects and $4.8 million available in rollover funds from canceled prior contracts. If Hillsborough County commissioners decide to renew the $10 million allocation toward HOPE funds, rather than redirect them, a total of $35 million will be earmarked for affordable housing initiatives in the county for fiscal year 2025.
The $10 million annual allocation for HOPE funds is included in the latest proposed county budget. The county commission will vote on final changes to the budget on Sept. 19 at 6 p.m.
Gabriella Paul covers the stories of people living paycheck to paycheck in the greater Tampa Bay region for WUSF. She's also a Report for America corps member. Here’s how you can share your story with her.
