Ralliers show support for controversial low-rent tower

Ralliers for a proposed low-income housing tower marched at Fort Lauderdale City Hall on Monday evening, as the nonprofit developer struggles to show community support for the controversial project.

Wearing T-shirts urging “Love Thy Neighbor,” men, women and children — many of them directly or indirectly affiliated with the developer — marched in circles and chanted “healthy housing for all!”

The marchers were brought to City Hall in two tour buses, as AIDS Healthcare Foundation attempts to counter strong opposition to its proposed 680-unit rental for low-income and formerly homeless people, at 700 SE 4th Ave. in Fort Lauderdale.

Emails to elected officials are overwhelmingly in opposition. Some organizations who were listed as supporters of the project have remained in the background or backed off, saying they were disappointed AHF didn’t garner community support.

And even at the supportive vigil Monday, some marchers were not eager to speak. Some of the more than 100 ralliers are employees of AIDS Healthcare Foundation or of agencies affiliated with it. A group of young girls who marched said their dance director brought

them.

“We’re all affected by AIDS,” one supporter, Lisa Zlotziver, who works for an AHF affiliate, said. “HIV is pandemic.”

The tower would not exclusively be for people living with HIV. AHF representatives have said the housing complex has nothing to do with the charity’s work adjacent to the development site to help people with HIV, and said it is illegal to ask a person whether they have HIV.

One woman, who said she didn’t want her name published because of harassment, showed a photograph she snapped of a man who told her he was offered $100 to board one of the supporter tour buses.

“Nobody was paid to come,” AHF spokesman Imara Canady said.

The AIDS nonprofit has run newspaper advertisements, conducted a public opinion poll, held an argumentative press confer

ence and created a website, among efforts to gain support. Canady said a small but loud group of people stand in opposition, making it appear the public doesn’t want it.

“There is resounding support across the board for this project,” Canady said.

At the community meeting inside City Hall on Monday, Fort Lauderdale Commissioner Ben Sorensen and the city’s development director, Anthony Fajardo, explained the approval process. The project is being reviewed by city development staff now, and when it meets the relevant laws and codes, it will be presented to city commissioners for the opportunity to hold a public hearing and vote. If no commissioner asks to do so, the tower would be approved.

Canady said AHF is working to respond to staff questions and comments about the 15-story building but he is not sure whether any dramatic changes will be made.

The project as proposed does not have the support of the City Commission, the Sun Sentinel reported Sunday.

The Rio Vista community, an upscale, single-family neighborhood on the other side of U.S. 1 from the property, is officially opposed to it.

After Monday’s meeting, Rio Vista former neighborhood president Warren Sturman said the community started a political action committee, is writing a mission statement and launching a website to explain its opposition.

Canady said Rio Vista was complicit in allowing hateful attacks on social media about who would live in the building, and he likened it to standing silent when someone makes a racist comment. People have said sexual predators and criminals would pack the tower.

“You’ve allowed a vocal minority to set the tone,” he said to Sturman.

“Our issues are traffic, infrastructure and parking,” Sturman responded. “As far as the people living in there, it has nothing to do with them.”

The apartments would be rented to people earning up to half the median household income in Broward — $26,500 — and some critics have said they think it’s ill advised to cluster hundreds of low-income or formerly homeless people together. AHF representatives have said rents would start at $400 or $500 a month, with a $100 security deposit.

They are small: 600 of the 680 apartments would be 263 square feet — considerably smaller than the smallest housing authority apartment. The remaining 80 apartments would be up to 400 square feet.

The 1.3-acre property is L-shaped, east of Southeast Fourth Avenue, between Southeast Seventh and Eighth streets.