As new affordable workforce apartments are being built on undeveloped land in Collier County, the cities of Naples and Marco Island are finding ways to convert existing buildings to accommodate essential service personnel.

This month, Marco Island Planning Board approved a conditional use to allow restaurateurs Joseph and Doreen Oliverio to build three two-bedroom apartments on the upper level of his building at 287 N. Collier Blvd., and parking would be provided at another building they own at 297 N. Collier Blvd., where Doreen’s Cup of Joe and La Mesa Taqueria are located. Two on-site, designated parking spaces will be provided for each apartment.

City Planning Manager Mary Holden told the board on Dec. 6 that it’s a very old building and is a nonconforming use. “What we are asking is they bring it into compliance to the greatest extent possible,” Holden said. “We’re suggesting that as a condition of approval.”

The approval will go before City Council in January and requires two public hearings.

After discussing ways to provide affordable housing under the state Live Local Act, Council agreed to amend its land development code to add a conditional-use process that would enable commercial building owners to convert upper-level offices into affordable apartments. State statutes define affordable as housing that costs no more than 30% of the median household income, including the monthly cost of the rent, taxes, insurance and utilities.

City staff said the ability to convert upper-level space typically used for offices into workforce housing would benefit employers, employees, residents and visitors by providing affordable housing conveniently located to jobs on the island.

A University of Florida housing study found that over the past decade, the average rent countywide doubled to $3,234 this year, and 52,749 employees are commuting here from outside the county, with nearly 30% driving from the East Coast. The study found 35% of jobs countywide pay less than $35,000 yearly, while 58% pay less than $45,000. Someone earning $45,000 yearly can afford a monthly rental of $1,125.

The median rent on Marco Island is $6,750, according to Zillow, which shows 156 available rentals. Apartments.com places the average rent for a 604-square-foot apartment at $3,783 per month.

Oliverio’s site is 0.4 acres, which permits three apartments. Under the process, efficiency and one-bedroom apartments would be a minimum of 450 square feet, while a two-bedroom unit would be at least 650 square feet and a three-bedroom apartment 900 square feet.

The process also requires that the building remain 50% commercial or more, at least 24% of the mixed-use development be used for open space, and that the property owner hold a neighborhood information meeting. Oliverio hosted one, but no one attended, and the plan wasn’t opposed.

The Oliverios own one other restaurant on the boulevard, Joey’s Pizza & Pasta House at 257 N. Collier Blvd. They purchased a building between the restaurants for employee parking and to convert upstairs offices to affordable apartments for his employees. It was Joe Oliverio who suggested the conditional-use process to city planners earlier this year.

Planning staff noted the site-development plan amendment application, coupled with a 10-year off-street parking and pedestrian-interconnect agreement and a proposed increase in seating at the Mexican restaurant — from 84 seats to 120 — is a substantial request, so the building must be brought more in compliance with the land development code.

Staff requested landscaping next to a parking space and that landscaping already surrounding the building be increased and refreshed, and Oliverio agreed to increase the pervious area with pervious pavers and landscaping, and to add a bench, bike rack and recycling bins. The latter two earned him a parking credit.

Zach Lombardo, Oliverio’s land-use attorney, also said that a vacant unit next to La Miranda Naples & Spa won’t be rented and will be used instead as storage, reducing the need for more parking on top of the 18 spaces dedicated to the first floor’s commercial uses.

The project team includes Oliverio Investment & Consulting Inc. and Robau & Associates construction.