Homeless Trust may build tiny homes in Miami-Dade

As Miami strives to achieve functional zero homelessness, the city is increasing its shelter bed capacity with a $2 million funding boost while revisiting tiny homes as a possible long-term housing solution.

City commissioners on Jan. 23 unanimously approved $2,638,675 to fund 213 emergency shelter beds with the Miami-Dade County Homeless Trust through October. The move reflects a broader push to address homelessness throughout the city and county, including plans to develop 150 tiny homes as part of a long-term strategy for providing stable, permanent housing.

“I simply wanted to say thank you,” said Homeless Trust Chairman Ron Book as he addressed the commission. “In the 34 years of the trust’s existence, we have never had a stronger partnership with the city than we have today. Tonight, we will start our point-in-time count and we expect the numbers in the geographic boundaries of the city to be at all-time lows.”

He continued, “The ability to step up the beds in partnership with the city and in the shared financial agreement that we have from a business standpoint is working, and again, I think you’ll see that in the numbers tonight.”

The $2.08 million for the shelter program was allocated from Mayor Francis X. Suarez’s share of the Miami for Everyone funds, supporting the city’s Functional Zero Program, an initiative announced in 2022 to address homelessness and provide safe, stable housing. An additional $560,000 was allocated from the Department of Human Services budget to fund 213 extended-stay shelter beds and related services.

Chairwoman Christine King said the city’s next step is to create more housing solutions. “We’re going to utilize tiny homes to permanently house those who were previously unhoused, and I’m really looking forward to that initiative,” she said.

Mr. Book outlined the tiny home proposal and tentative pricing agreement for 150, 465-square-foot, two-bedroom units with air conditioning, a kitchen, bathroom and living space. “We are working aggressively with a tiny home entity to get their product approved under the Florida and South Florida building codes, respectively. We’ve been engaged with them for several months,” he said.

“It’s a legitimate home, unlike the sheds, unlike the palate homes, unlike a lot of products that people talk about being homes but the bathroom is down the road and the kitchen is a common kitchen… this is all self-contained,” Mr. Book explained.

As for pricing, the first 75 tiny homes would come at a 50% discount of $26,000 apiece plus $5,500 to ship and $3,000 to install and hook up each unit to electricity, sewer and water lines. The tentative agreement includes a second lot of 75 homes at $52,000 a unit, plus the shipping, installation and hook-up costs.

“Those numbers could shift as we move through product approval … but one of the things they did to speed up [the process] was they’ve chosen a window and a door that are already hurricane tested,” Mr. Book said.

Commissioner Joe Carollo noted a previous city proposal to develop tiny homes on Virginia Key that fell through after community opposition and concerns that the barrier island was too isolated from vital resources and not the ideal location.

“Where are you considering placing the tiny homes?” asked Mr. Carollo.

“We are looking hard at a parcel on the south end of the county that we’ve identified as a potential. The hiccup for us right now is the cost of the infrastructure and getting the [utility] lines to the property,” Mr. Book answered.

The trust is drawing inspiration from a successful tiny home community in Tallahassee.

“We have taken folks from the administration to see a tiny home development in Tallahassee about a year, year and a half ago,” Mr. Book said. “That started as a 50-unit tiny home community for formerly homeless individuals. They have now added 100 homes. It’s workforce and affordable mixed in with formerly homeless. It’s a legitimate community.”

He added that the trust has worked with an architect on a site plan layout for such a community and is also engaging the city administration in conversations about parcels within its jurisdiction for potential homes where the necessary electric, water and sewer lines are already in place.

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