It’s called the Lakeland Housing Authority, but almost 85 years after it was created, the federally-funded local agency does much more than its name implies.
From job training to senior healthcare, youth tutoring, financial counseling and help with home ownership, the Lakeland Housing Authority provides a wide array of social services in addition to its main mission of providing safe, affordable housing.
Executive Director Ben Stevenson, who has headed the agency since 2012, said it accomplishes this mission through publicly financed housing developments, Section 8 housing choice vouchers, and affordable home ownership and rental programs.
The Lakeland Housing Authority’s properties are primarily in Lakeland, although it has a few in the surrounding areas of Polk County.
“The LHA was created to serve Lakeland. Due to the housing crisis and other factors we have expanded our service area in order to assist other housing authorities and housing partners,” Stevenson said.
However, even with a budget of about $24.5 million, the need is much greater than the supply.
“For every 10 families that need affordable housing, there’s only three units available. There’s a huge affordable housing shortage not only in Lakeland but in the state of Florida. It’s a national problem,” he said.
To give a glimpse of the problem, Stevenson said when the agency opened applications in August for Section 8 vouchers and public housing, 7,200 households applied. But it only had 1,525 vouchers to give out.
“We’ve had waiting lists for public housing and Section 8 for years,” Stevenson said.
To qualify for its housing programs, Stevenson said a household’s annual income must be at or below 80% of the area median income (AMI), which was $57,100 for a family of four or $40,000 for an individual for the Lakeland-Winter Haven area in 2023.
Many programs are limited to those earning less than 50% of the AMI, which this year was $35,700 for a family of four or $25,000 for an individual. Residents’ income is evaluated annually.
Public housing: Then and now
The Lakeland Housing Authority was created shortly after the passage of the U.S. Housing Act of 1937. It was the 11th housing authority created in the state of Florida. The federal act required each state to establish public housing authorities in cooperation with local governments.
In the early decades of public housing, many projects in major cities like Chicago and New York were poorly run, segregated from the rest of the community, and became synonymous with crime and despair. But that is a far cry from what exists in Lakeland today.
“Our housing looks just as good as the private-sector housing. We take pride in how we maintain our properties. People can’t look at us and say, oh that’s public housing.”
ben stevenson, executive director of the lakeland housing authority
Stevenson said some people would be surprised to find out the entity “doesn’t have the worst housing in the city.”
“We help low-income people afford a decent, safe place to live,” Stevenson explained. “People accuse us of being a slumlord. We’re not. Our housing looks just as good as the private-sector housing. We take pride in how we maintain our properties. People can’t look at us and say, oh that’s public housing.”
Twin Lakes Estates, located on Hartsell Avenue, across from Lake Beulah and Blake Academy, is one example. It was built on the site of the former West Lake apartments, one of Lakeland’s oldest public housing communities. The agency tore down most of the bleak, 60-year-old barracks-style public housing units and rebuilt them into a senior and multi-family unit apartment complex, complete with a community center.
The 34 remaining West Lake units are scheduled to be demolished in 2024. Stevenson said they will be replaced with 86 multi-family apartments, ranging from one to three bedrooms. He anticipates the construction will be completed in 2025 and said applications will open up about 90 days before construction is completed.
Stevenson said there are also plans to demolish the 40-unit Carrington Place property, located at 1411 Kettles Ave., in 2024 and replace it with a 76-unit senior community. Current residents will be given vouchers to allow them to move somewhere else, according to Stevenson.
Working toward self-sufficiency
While the agency strives to offer safe, affordable housing, it also wants to help residents move beyond needing assistance. Stevenson said the Lakeland Housing Authority has a Family Self-Sufficiency program that provides a five-year path to economic independence by providing extra support while a head of household gets job training or completes a degree program.
Inside the community centers, they also offer tutoring for children and financial counseling for residents.
“We try to encourage the residents in our community to move to some level of independence and self-sufficiency. We work to improve their station in life. It can be anything as simple as getting a GED, a steady job or correcting their credit,” Stevenson said, adding they also have mental health counselors and provide parenting counseling to help residents learn how to become better parents.
Another initiative, focused on young people ages 18 to 24, is the six-month-long YouthBuild Lakeland program. Founded in 2007, Stevenson said the program provides a second chance to young people who may have dropped out of school or gotten pregnant, by helping them learn a trade in the construction industry.
“It’s one of the most successful ones in the country,” Stevenson said. “We have a 90% success rate of (attendees) getting a GED and learning a trade. We were recently selected by the Dept. of Labor to serve as a mentor to a YouthBuild program in Delaware.”
When the housing authority has a construction project, one of the housing units is built by students in the YouthBuild Program. Similar to an apprenticeship, certified contractors teach the students and oversee their work. Participants receive a stipend while in the program, Stevenson explained. Some of the certifications they can receive are in carpentry, CPR and first aid, forklift operation, typing, financial literacy, and Certified Nursing Assistant.
YouthBuild Lakeland is currently accepting applicants through January. To create an account and apply, visit: https://lakelandhousing.org/Other-Programs/youthbuild.aspx
Help with home ownership
Homeownership isn’t realistic for everyone. “The majority of our clients are not going to become homeowners and they don’t have enough income to do that,” Stevenson told city commissioners earlier this month.
But he said the agency began a Section 8 homeownership program a year ago where applicants pay a portion of the mortgage and the Section 8 voucher pays for the rest, instead of the voucher going to a landlord.
So far, six people have gone through the program.
“We have a licensed real estate broker on staff who works with potential homeowners and offers counseling such as how to pay their bills, fix their credit, and (maintain) budget,” Stevenson explained. “Not everyone is ready to be a homeowner or homebuyer, but those who want to work towards that, we work with them to do that.”
The program won a National Merit Award from the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials for the program in October. It was one of four of the prestigious awards the Lakeland Housing Authority won.
The housing authority also won a National Merit award for its HUD Veteran Affairs Supportive Housing Program. The program pairs Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher rental assistance with people participating in the Healthcare for Homeless Veterans Program. It allows homeless veterans to access permanent housing, health care, mental health treatment, and substance use counseling, according to a news release.
“It means that what we’re doing is working. I pat my staff on the back because they work very hard to assist people,” Stevenson said.
From ‘at-risk’ agency to successful model
The accolades are particularly meaningful because of how far the agency has come since Stevenson took the helm in 2012.
After being designated a “financially at-risk public housing authority” in 2011, the Lakeland Housing Authority was required to enter into a corrective action plan with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development in 2012 and 2013. Those plans were implemented as a result of a forensic audit that produced 77 findings and concerns within the agency.
Stevenson not only corrected the audit findings, but also completed both plans. Now, Lakeland’s agency is a model for other jurisdictions.
“The Lakeland Housing Authority offers more services than a typical housing authority,” he said. “We’ve created something that is successful. We created a model that other housing authorities can innovate. It’s a model that can be used around the country.”
On-site healthcare and tax preparation
Along with senior housing, the Lakeland Housing Authority developed an on-site medical clinic at its Renaissance at Washington Ridge Property. This program also received a National Merit Award.
Run by UniHealth Primary Care and located at 150 W. 14th Street, this medical facility serves 78 residents and is open to seniors. Its services include management of new and old illnesses, hypertension, diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease, mammography and even assistance with menopause, according to a news release.
Partnering with the U.S. Dept. of Treasury Internal Revenue Services, the Lakeland Housing Authority also has a certified volunteer income tax assistance program, according to a news release.
The authority has 14 staff members who serve as volunteer tax preparers, providing free tax preparation services to its public housing residents, Section 8 tenants, and low-to-moderate income families.
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I can’t get anyone on the phone every time when I called the Lakeland Housing Authority. Who I should contact if I have questions about helping elderly parent to apply for the housing choice vouchers.
Hi, Ms. Chen. The Housing Authority is the appropriate place to call, but you can also try 2-1-1, which is the United Way’s resource hotline.