Neighbors split over Augusta’s first potential tiny home neighborhood
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Augusta’s first step to the future of affordable housing in tiny homes is making progress.
A zoning request for a foster home transition community, for young adults ages 18 to 25, was approved Monday during Augusta’s planning commission.
A modest three-acre park off of Merry Street could be the future site of Augusta’s first tiny home community, which would provide affordable housing.
The need for foster care itself has only grown since the pandemic. Before the pandemic, experts say 15,000 kids in Georgia needed a home or family.
It’s now at 20,000 and once they turn 18, there are almost no resources to help transition.
“It is pretty much non-existent. There’s just not a lot out there,” said Mary Gossard.
Gossard is a foster parent recruiter for the state of Georgia at the National Youth Advocate Program.
“I am so excited that there is an alternative for children that are being placed out of foster care or being aged out of foster,” she said.
While it intends to help foster kids transition into adulthood, neighbors in the area have mixed feelings about adding a whole other neighborhood to the park that they’ve known.
“It’s nice. I think it’s a very nice idea. They need a home to live in,” said neighbor Carolen Howard. “I’m just thankful for the kids to have somewhere to stay.”
Neighbor Lucia Barbera said: “Respect the fact that this is a community park. The view from my home is worth a million dollars to me because it’s about a view, it’s about an experience to me.”
A petition against the zoning request for the tiny homes has even been organized by Michael Thurman. He lives nearby and rents out a number of homes around the park.
“They need help but this neighborhood deserves their park and they don’t need to lose it. You don’t have to do one in spite of the other,” said Thurman.
Thurman’s petition has more than 30 signatures.
This item comes before the full Augusta commission on April 16, after Masters week. This is another chance to weigh your thoughts in before this zoning request gets approved.
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