“Homelessness was a big struggle,” says Walter. “Worse going through that than going through addiction.” Walter is 55 years old, and he’s been living for a year in an apartment on the third floor of Innovare (850 5th Ave S), a new 50-unit affordable housing complex in St. Pete’s Innovation District. This unique development grants permanent housing to vulnerable and homeless individuals or families, with 100% of the tenants remaining stably housed over the last 12 months.
Walter is sharply dressed, wearing a matching pink shirt and shoes. His apartment is immaculate. The couches where we sit were donated, along with the kitchen table, dresser, and bed. However, Walter has added personal touches: an antique lamp he recently thrifted and a painting of a woman and child swathed in white robes, which once belonged to his late father, hangs like an image of mercy on the wall above the couch. To see the apartment, to see Walter, you’d never suspect that a year and a half ago he was living in a tent encampment.
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While Walter has been sober since 2018, it wasn’t until 2024 that he overcame his hardest obstacle: homelessness. “All the disappointments, setbacks, all the hard days, and all the losses I took, and then I got this [apartment],” murmurs Walter, who turns his face away tremulously, prompting Stephanie Vranich, VP of Outreach and Development, to pop off the couch and into the kitchen to grab tissues. “These people here were my answered prayer,” says Walter. “I just wanted my key to open a door again…a place to call my own.”
Innovare eliminates barriers to success
Walter’s testimony represents one of 50 similarly harrowing situations residents endured. Since incepting Innovare in February 2024, the Volunteers of America Florida (VOAF) staff transitioned 26 individuals struggling with severe mental health and addiction issues from tent encampments into Innovare. The remaining 24 units were designated for individuals at 60% Area Median Income. To date, 100% of those residents remain stably housed, and 89% with mental health issues showed functional improvements.
These impressive statistics result from the VOAF’s hands-on approach and continuum of care. The administrative and care staff offices are co-located within the residential buildings, rather than placed off-site. Stephanie Vranich opens her office window every morning and greets tenants: “Good morning, Ms. Palmer! Good Morning, Donna!” Co-locating promotes consistent and present support services, removing a barrier that often inhibits successful recovery.
VOAF designed Innovare to eliminate as many barriers for their residents as possible. In addition to co-locating the staff services and housing, VOAF considers its residents permanent, even if they do not earn an income. Those who do earn and are at 60% AMI are automatically charged a third of their income, ensuring residents do not have to worry about sudden evictions and temporary shelters. However, Vranich adds that most residents see Innovare as a step toward independence and actively seek secure housing elsewhere, making room for others to move in. 
A long-term approach to affordable housing
Janet Stringfellow, President and CEO of VOAF at Innovare, describes Innovare as “a long-term approach to affordable housing.” Temporary housing addresses immediate need, but cannot set up individuals for sustained progress. If you apply for a job, you need an address; If you request government documents, address; enroll in a mobile phone plan—again, address. All while coping with the mental impact of being uprooted, hence the pernicious cycle of homelessness. Innovare’s approach breaks that cycle, allowing permanency while they assist residents with healthcare, transport, job hunts, and even cooking classes.
Because of Innovare’s success, developers pitch partnerships weekly—affordable housing developments are eligible for tax credits. But Stringfellow demands, “…unless they separate a part of the revenue and development fees for support services, we aren’t going to be their partner. We are about building affordable housing WITH quality services.” To receive tax credits, developers are usually required to designate 20% as affordable housing, but they can re-designate those units after a set time, eliminating affordable housing from the property. Conversely, Innovare designated 100% of its units in perpetuity.
VOAF will soon replicate Innovare’s model at HQ in Virginia, but another has already been completed in Marianna, increasing VOAF’s footprint in Florida. As of 2024, there are well over 700 unhoused people in St. Pete, enduring the pernicious cycle of homelessness and hopelessness. Donna, affectionately called “The Mayor of Innovare”, was recently housed here. She says, “I was in hell before, now I’m in heaven.” Out of that despair, Donna exhibits a dignity akin to the mural on the southwest corner of the building, a regal dragon, now that her key opens a door to a place she can call her own.
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