Winter Haven Commission Approves Affordable Housing for Families with Children in Local Schools
by James Coulter
Approximately 13 townhomes are proposed to be constructed to provide transitional affordable housing for families with school-aged children after Winter Haven commissioners approved an agreement with a local nonprofit focused on combating homelessness.
At their regular meeting on Mon. Aug. 24, 2026, Winter Haven city commissioners voted unanimously to approve a transitional affordable housing agreement with Heart for Winter Haven (H4WH), a nonprofit that supports families facing poverty, particularly those with children in local schools.
The agreement allocates $350,000 towards the purchase of roughly 0.818 acres at the southwest corner of 7th Street SW and Avenue N SW and the construction of 13 townhomes to be used for transitional affordable housing.
“Heart for Winter Haven intends to purchase the property, construct the townhomes units, and utilize those units as transitional affordable housing for families with children in Winter Haven schools who are experiencing, or are at risk of experiencing homelessness,” wrote Eric Labbe, Director of Economic Opportunity and Community Investment.
The agreement also requires the property to be placed under a lien, which will be forgiven over time as long as the units remain affordable and are used for their intended purpose. If the units meet those conditions for at least seven years, the lien will be forgiven 15 percent per year for six years, with the final 10 percent forgiven in the seventh year.
H4WH requested assistance from the City, which agreed to provide a $350,000 forgivable grant from its Supplemental Affordable Housing Trust Fund.
Founded in 2014, the organization seeks to assist local families through its CARE method:
- Connect all sectors of the city (churches, businesses, non-profits, and city leadership)
- Alleviate poverty (in all its forms)
- Restore relationships
- Elevate the entire community
“We believe poverty has been misdiagnosed; it’s rooted in broken relationships. We bring people together through collaborations that restore relationships, build resources, and grow community,” its website states. “We believe each person has inherent worth and value, as we are all created in the image of God. Our desire is for all people to see poverty in light of broken relationships, and to see themselves as restorative healers, binding the brokenhearted.”
W4WH has since achieved two of its three main goals: first, directly assisting 1,000 families by the end of 2025, and second, launching the Center for City and Life Transformation that same year. Its third and final goal: “ensure there isn’t a single homeless child in Winter Haven.”
Mayor Brian Yates praised the organization and its efforts to provide transitional housing. While he said he does not view “handouts” or homeless shelters as an effective long‑term solution to homelessness (which he called a “lifestyle” that many people choose), he supported helping families of children in local schools.
“Children did not ask for this situation that they may have been placed in by their parents or guardians,” he said. “But here is an opportunity to give a hand up rather than a handout and help families with school-aged children to become a little more financially stable so that they can make decisions moving forward to get them out of this step and into a step of hopefully home ownership.”
Commissioner Clifton E. Dollison disagreed, saying his conversations with homeless individuals show homelessness is not a “choice” or “lifestyle,” but an unfortunate circumstance, and that helping people in that situation is worthwhile.
“So, I think this is more complicated than you think sometimes,” he said. “I think recognizing that there are a lot of people who are suffering in our community, and for those who work hard every day to make life better for them, I applaud their efforts and those who have been championing these efforts…I am looking forward to this effort, and those who have come before us are moving in the right direction, and I think this is the way forward.”
Commissioner Chad Davis praised the transitional housing agreement, especially since it will help children attending local schools, which, in turn, will benefit those schools.
“These units will be serving our families, our children, and our schools,” he said. “So, I really do appreciate that, and I echo the mayor’s support. This is going to be a great project, and I look forward to seeing how it comes into fruition.”
