Orange County commissioners on Oct. 14 approved the county’s third three‑year Affordable Housing Trust Fund plan (FY 2026–28), authorizing a $58.6 million budget and a set of nine funding strategies aimed at producing and preserving affordable housing across the county.

What the board did: The board adopted the Affordable Housing Trust Fund plan and associated budget, and instructed staff to implement the plan’s strategies, which include gap financing for multifamily development, preservation and homeowner rehabilitation, a land‑banking program for donated county lots, a $3.5 million revolving loan fund for nonprofit construction loans, an impact‑fee subsidy program with an exemption matrix, a local rental assistance strategy, innovation and “missing middle” pilots, education/capacity building for small developers, and a new grant program to help pay sewer‑connection or enhanced septic costs in priority areas.

Why it matters: The county is continuing a long‑term commitment to affordable housing that it first began funding in 2020; the plan is the operating blueprint for using locally directed trust funds that the board has pledged to sustain through local revenues. Commissioners and staff framed the plan as a practical mix of production and preservation strategies intended to leverage state and federal funding and nonprofit partnerships.

Key numbers and mechanisms: The county’s long‑term pledge is $10 million per year with an annual 10 percent increase that was scheduled over a 10‑year horizon (a local commitment that the board established when the trust fund was launched). The trust fund had collected about $83.8 million in deposits through FY2025, and the board authorized the next three‑year allocation at $58.6 million for FY2026–28. Trust fund awards are distributed through competitive requests for proposals (RFPs) and partner agreements; to date the trust fund has leveraged dozens of projects and helped create or preserve more than 2,300 trust‑fund units and roughly 4,900 total affordable units across the county when matched with federal or state resources. Staff estimates the FY 2026–28 pipeline could produce or preserve roughly 3,570 trust‑fund‑leveraged units plus an additional 1,500 units with other funds during the same period.

New strategy additions and policy changes: The board approved a new grant program to help offset the capital cost of forced‑main sewer connections or advanced septic systems in Wekiva and county priority areas, to be administered with Utilities. The plan increases standard affordability periods (gap financing affordability from 20 to 30 years), formalizes a point‑based impact‑fee exemption matrix to reward deeper and longer affordability, and clarifies amendment thresholds (changes greater than 25 percent or changes to strategy lists require board approval).

Debate and context: Commissioners said they wanted both production and preservation work: building new capacity while protecting aging affordable stock. Several speakers from the housing and nonprofit sector addressed the board in support; staff and community partners emphasized the need for continued county general‑fund support because federal grant dollars are often flat and competitive.

What’s next: Staff will continue competitive RFPs and execute agreements under the adopted plan; awarded projects will be monitored for affordability periods and reporting requirements. Commissioners directed staff to return as needed to the board for any substantial plan amendments or program expansions.