An $8 million investment into an affordable housing venture downtown will be the subject of one of two Mobile City Council committee meetings set for Tuesday, May 24.
The council’s entitlement committee will meet to discuss a proposal to spend $8 million in federal CARES Act funds to help developer Gulf Coast Housing Project move forward on the $32 million project to renovate the historic Gayfer’s building across from Bienville Square.
Mayor Sandy Stimpson’s office is supporting the plan after again asking for requests for proposals to use the money set aside for affordable housing.
Stimpson Chief of Staff James Barber said the city received seven proposals and all but three met the rules laid out in the RFP process. Those three were all in West Mobile and there had been a push from community members to make sure affordable housing units were added east of Interstate 65.
The latest court guidance on the issue has pushed states to add funding for affordable housing outside of traditional zones, which for Mobile, means a move to the west. At the same time, the Mobile Housing Authority is moving to sell property it had older housing on.
Immediately before the entitlement committee meeting, the council’s rules committee will meet at 1 p.m. to discuss a racial polarization study to assess the likelihood that voters in the city will choose a candidate of their same race in a potential election.
The council has introduced an ordinance calling for the study, as the debate over redistricting continues. At issue are maps proposed by Stimpson that show only a slight majority, about 51 percent, among Black citizens of voting age in District 7. A community coalition is pushing for the council to instead consider maps drawn by the Southern Poverty Law Center that would give Black voting-aged Mobilians a greater share of the District 7 population, at 53 and 54 percent, respectively.
Both meetings will be held in the council conference room on the ninth floor of Government Plaza and neither will allow in-person, public comment. Those who would like to submit questions can do so through [email protected].
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