CUTLER BAY, Fla. – Miami-Dade commissioners approved converting hotel rooms at the La Quinta Inn in Cutler Bay into housing units for low-income seniors on Tuesday.
Miami-Dade County is set to acquire an approximately 87,626-square-foot property along with a 46,415-square-foot building at 10821 Caribbean Blvd., in Cutler Bay for $14 million. The deal includes authorization for up to $40,000 in closing costs.
The town of Cutler Bay had previously opposed the plan, but the commissioners’ decision was influenced by new requirements.
The previously suggested guidelines for the units to be exclusively for seniors on annual leases have now been made mandatory.
The Miami-Dade Homeless Trust expects to begin retrofitting the hotel rooms within the next 45 days, with the goal of housing seniors by the end of the year.
“This allows us to expend the $14 million to purchase the building and to ultimately retrofit it. The funds were made available to retrofit, so we can put kitchenettes in every unit as well,” said Ron Book, chairman of the Miami-Dade Homeless Trust.
”Now that they have agreed to 55 and over, they are long-term leases. The residents have to pay a portion of the rent,” said Cutler Bay Mayor Tim Meerbott. “There is no needle exchange (and) no outreach services. There is going to be onsite management, and now it looks like it is going to be a positive thing for the community and for the homeless in Miami-Dade County.”
Book confirmed the hotel-to-housing plan will serve nearly 150 seniors from the homeless population.
The vote was 11-2, with Commissioners Rene Garcia and Danielle Cohen Higgins voting against the resolution.
According to Book, some key requirements include:
- Housing exclusively for senior citizens
- No needle exchange programs
- No conversion into a shelter
- Background checks for prospective tenants
- Tenants must pay one-third of their income or available funds
Click here for a closer look at the resolution.
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