Tiny homes go up for Hurricane Milton victims in Martin County
By Yasmine Julmisse
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PORT SALERNO, Florida (WPBF) — “The footprint of this house is about 240 feet on the bottom,” said Robert Zaccheo, CEO of Project Lift. “About 426 total with the top floors, which gives you opportunities for two bedrooms.”
Project Lift is a nonprofit that works with youth ages 14 to 25 on their mental health and teaches them how to work with their hands.
The teens are building tiny houses for people whose homes were damaged by the historic tornadoes caused by Hurricane Milton in October.
About six to 10 different teens that worked specifically on the house.
“The lens of Project Lift is always mental health,” Zaccheo said. “If we’re not going to get them clear-minded decision-makers, then we’re not really going to be successful with them in the future.”
Two tornadoes hit Martin County during Milton, including in a Port Salerno neighborhood that saw roofs torn off, doors blown out and irreparable damage.
One of the first people on the ground was Casey Cass, president of Casco Tools and CEO of the nonprofit “Save our Salerno.”
The organization, which has only been around for about a year and a half, was founded to be a community advocate.
“We thought we were just going to do, you know, some scholarships and some fun events, but it turned into a pretty major effort,” Cass said.
“Save our Salerno” sprang into action in the midst of destruction, going into neighborhoods with tarps and other supplies and creating solutions for disaster-stricken homeowners by partnering with Project Lift to make tiny homes.
“Our goal is to get them moved in so that they can be here while their homes are being rebuilt,” Cass said. “It’s a huge cost Project Lift has incurred to make it happen.”
That cost includes $75,000 for the construction materials and labor alone per house.
The price tag also includes Florida Department of Health requirements, plumbing and electrical work, and transporting the home on the homeowner’s property.
“You end up right around $110 to $115,000 just to land a house on the spot,” Zaccheo said.
To Zaccheo and Cass, it’s all worth it, as long as the mental health of the kids who work on the homes is improving and the Port Salerno community knows they’re supported.
“To fundamentally get a person to change, they have to understand that they’re not takers, but they’re givers. Those kids that worked on this building, they just gave more than the typical person would ever give in their entire life by actually working on a house that was given to a family.” Zaccheo said.
“I came from a family of nine,” Cass said. “I wouldn’t be where I am now if people hadn’t reached out at different times in my life.”
So far, there are two homes in this New Monrovia neighborhood. The hope is to get more homes up including in Manatee Creek, as long as there’s more funding.
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