IMMOKALEE — The Immokalee Fair Housing Alliance (IFHA) is pleased to announce it has been awarded a $15,000 grant from the Community Foundation of Collier County to assist with planning and fund development for the construction of their Immokalee affordable housing community.

IFHA has purchased 10 acres of land on Lake Trafford Road in Immokalee and will build 128 safe, affordable rental units for farmworker families, replacing overpriced, overcrowded, and dilapidated trailers and shacks now serving as housing. The project will include a neighborhood community center with rooms for pre- and after-school learning, adult education classes, and community meetings. After completion, the community is designed to be self-supporting.

According to Dr. Arol Buntzman, Board Chair of IFHA, “Safe, affordable, hurricane resistant housing has been the missing link for many years in assisting farmworker and other low income families to escape poverty and exploitation. Lower rents will free up needed money to buy food, clothing, medicines, and other necessities. The ripple effect will be economic growth and stability for the city of Immokalee.”

To learn more about IFHA project and discover how you can help, visit IFHA.info or call Campaign Fund Chair Cleve Cleveland at 239-247-9118.

The Community Foundation of Collier County, now in its 35th year, is a tax-exempt, public, charitable organization established in 1985 to increase and focus on local private philanthropy. Today, the Community Foundation of Collier County manages more than 750 funds, collaborates with hundreds of nonprofits, holds over $250 million in assets and has distributed over $200 million in grants to nonprofit organizations and community programs. The Community Foundation of Collier County is one of Florida’s fastest-growing community foundations. For good. Forever. Learn more at cfcollier.org or call 239-649-5000.