PINELLAS PARK – The City Council will soon get an official look at an affordable housing plan that would mean construction of so-called “kit houses” on city-owned and private property.
The idea of Councilman Rick Butler is to build the inexpensive Katrina Cottages that feature 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom and a kitchen. They would be built on property around city-owned retention ponds that now require high maintenance such as water treatment, pest control and grass cutting.
They would essentially become “waterfront homes,” Butler said, that would be rented or sold to workforce families, those people and families low on the economic totem pole.
The Katrina houses could be purchased from a major hardware store in kit form. Construction plans are available for $700.
Butler said he has already met with investors, mainly contractors, who voiced interest in getting involved in the project. But, he cautioned, while the cost of building the kit homes is reasonable the cost of land is not.
“That’s why it is important to see if they can be constructed on land already owned by the city,” Butler said. “Once we see if that works than we can approach others because we would be able to show a track record of success.”
Kit houses first were introduced in 1908 by Sears. Nearly 10,000 kit homes were built until the 1940s when the company abandoned the program.
There are Sears kit homes still standing in the city and in other Pinellas County municipalities. They generally arrived in two boxcars containing about 30,000 pieces.
“There is a definite need for affordable housing for both renters and owners,” Butler said. “Many people cannot afford traditional housing due to cost, insurance and property taxes.”
The plan is still very much in the exploratory stage and it would be a few years before the project got off the ground, if at all.
