MIAMI – A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held Friday for a revolutionary new affordable housing complex in Miami's Liberty City known as The Villages.
T. Williams Fair, the CEO of the Urban League of Greater Miami, said it's the transformation he has dreamed of.
"This project is now sitting on where it used to be occupied by the ghetto of Liberty City," he said.
The brand-new units of one-to three-bedroom apartments are already occupied by 150 families.
The $38 million complex also features amenities most residents could never afford before.
"A lot of people who move here, they had never lived in anything nice before; nothing new. All of our residents here, they have A/C. We have a swimming pool. We have a playground for our kids," Villages resident Danette Jones said.
Jones grew up in the neighborhood. She now lives in The Villages and manages the property.
Like many of her neighbors, Jones loves her community and does not want to leave it.
"They are from here. They don't want to leave their families," Jones said. "And to be able to move in Liberty City and stay in Liberty City -- it's such a beautiful community. That's why they're here."
Developers are proud of what they accomplished in Liberty City and hope to make more homes of this type available to everyone.
"We have brought South Beach to Liberty City," Williams Fair said. "It's more than nice. But most importantly, it's a statement that where there is a will, there is a way."