The Jacksonville City Council in Florida approved legislation to transfer three parcels of surplus property to Kairos International Development Inc. for affordable housing sites. The lots are included on the Affordable Housing Property Inventory List.
It’s a collection of about 430 properties the city took over when the previous owners failed to pay the ad valorem taxes. Most are valued at less than $5,000 but the total assessed value of the parcels is nearly $3.8 million.
The lots are available for donation to private entities that agree to build housing for low-income residents. Kairos tried to take ownership of the property, but discovered doing that would involve going to court.
“All three of those properties didn’t have clear title and it could have taken one or two years to clear the titles,” council member Bill Gulliford, who introduced the transfer legislation, told (Jacksonville) The Daily Record. “A lot of the properties we can donate have significant issues.”
The market value of the land is $9,345, according to the Duval County Property Appraiser’s website.
Kairos President Alex Itkin said he plans to divide the property into three lots and place prefabricated homes on the lots.
“It’s a pilot program I hope will lead to the development of more homes for low-income residents in partnership with the city. I can buy lots, but the homes would be much more affordable if the city gives me the lots,” Itkin said.