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Letter to the editor

Developer wantsto rent unsold townhomes

The City Council will make a decision about Bella Terraza.

By ROBBYN MITCHELL Times Staff Writer
Published October 12, 2007

A developer who promised to bring owner-occupied townhomes west of 56th Street now has another idea: townhomes with renters.

The proposal, brought to the City Council on Oct. 2, has been met with skepticism. For years city leaders and homeowners have decried the high percentage of renters in and around Temple Terrace, saying it leads to instability and crime.

But H&R Florida Properties is having trouble selling the last 10 of 21 townhomes in Bella Terraza because of the abrupt halt the housing market had taken, said managing member Harry Hedges.

"These are tough times in the housing market," Hedges told the council. "Not just here but across the country."

And the trend is very much a part of Temple Terrace's recent history.

Fifty-four percent of housing in Temple Terrace is for multiple families -- a characteristic that usually distinguishes renters from owners, said city spokesman Mike Dunn.

"Life is much more transient," said Gale Garnier of the city's housing office. "There are rentals on every street in Temple Terrace now, and that's something new for council to deal with."

Owners of the $180,000-plus townhomes are especially concerned.

Euriel Bowers moved into Bella Terraza 10 months ago with his wife and school-age daughter because of the proximity to the businesses on 56th Street N. "You can walk to the grocery store or wherever you need to go," he said. "And the school is right there."

But he worries who the renters will be.

So does council member Ken Halloway.

"Turning these units over to rental is the first step on a slippery slope," he told Hedges. "If the owner doesn't have any equity, then the surroundings go down."

Douglas Williams moved into Bella Terraza right after the Bowers family because he was tired of living in rental complexes and wanted to be close to the downtown redevelopment.

"I don't mind renters if the standards are met and kept," he said. But he does not want neighbors who receive housing subsidies under the federal Section 8 program, fearing they will wind up "bringing the value of my home down."

Damian Populin, a father of three with a lease-to-own agreement at Bella Terraza, says, "we'll be moving out if they let renters in."

The council tabled Hedges' proposal on Oct. 2 and will revisit it this Tuesday.

[Last modified October 11, 2007, 07:49:31]