If the Keys adds affordable housing with this condition, activists predict a disaster

Gov. Rick Scott's recent gift of 1,300 building permits for affordable workforce housing in the Florida Keys is a disaster waiting to happen if a hurricane evacuation is ordered, a local environmental protection group says.

The new building permits came with a condition that those who live in the housing units must evacuate 48 hours in advance of tropical storm winds reaching the shore of the Keys.

Keys leaders, including Key West Mayor Craig Cates, welcomed the 1,300 added units saying they are badly needed. But Last Stand, the local group, is questioning the feasibility of the advanced evacuation stipulation.

It's both unrealistic and unenforceable, says Last Stand, which is urging Keys officials to reject the permits.

"Unlike our most recent experience with Hurricane Irma, with more than five days of warning, the Keys will not always have the luxury of planning for an orderly evacuation according to the optimal timeline," the group said in a statement.

The Monroe County Commission has set a special meeting at 11 a.m. Thursday at the Marathon Government Center, 2798 Overseas Hwy., with the issue on the agenda.

Instead of adding 1,300 units, Last Stand says Keys officials must focus on rebuilding housing that was destroyed by Hurricane Irma, which made landfall last Sept. 10.

"The notion that our lowest-paid workers will have the resources to evacuate early and often is fallacious," Last Stand said. "Safety of residents leaving within the 24-hour window would be severely compromised when vehicles from proposed new workforce housing allocations add to the traffic flow at the last minute."

This story was originally published May 8, 2018 at 2:58 PM with the headline "If the Keys adds affordable housing with this condition, activists predict a disaster."