KISSIMMEE, Fla. – A Kissimmee commissioner is advocating for remodeling residential garages into affordable housing units.
How it would work: in theory, a homeowner would rent their remodeled garage and the renter would save money by receiving a lower rate than larger apartments on the market.
Mayor Pro-tem Angela Eady said she got the idea after she discovered a couple and their young child were sleeping in their vehicle near her home.
“I looked at my garage, and I was like, ‘Wait a minute, wait a minute, why can’t we convert garages into studio apartments? That might help,’” Eady said.
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Eady presented the idea to the commission during its May 7 meeting. The board voted to instruct staff to look into what the next steps would be.
“It’s going to take some time. You know, they didn’t build Rome in a night, so we have to look at all the obstacles that we come across and the benefits of this — the whole nine yards,” Eady said.
So far, the discussions limit the garage conversion to only homesteaded properties outside an HOA community.
“I would say if you are in need of extra income, and if you are compassionate about people, then this might be something that you might want to pursue,” Eady said.
According to the Florida Department of Health, Osceola County’s estimated homeless population grew from 214 in 2019 to 358 in 2023.
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