Family helps raise final walls at Habitat Collier neighborhood

NAPLES, Fla. — Habitat for Humanity marked a major milestone Tuesday as crews raised the final walls at Majestic Place, a pre-planned neighborhood in East Naples designed to help families achieve homeownership.

The moment also gave future homeowners a chance to take part in building the place they will soon call home.

Volunteers worked side by side with Habitat for Humanity of Collier County staff and Adriana Gutierrez, who will live in one of the homes with her family. Together, they helped lift and secure the final walls — a hands-on experience Gutierrez said adds deeper meaning to their journey toward homeownership.

“Wow, it feels amazing because we can actually say we helped put the walls up,” Gutierrez said. “Something like that — it’ll be a big memory for my kids, for us," she added.

Habitat for Humanity says communities like Majestic Place are designed to provide a path to homeownership for families who may not otherwise have the opportunity. The program offers no-interest mortgages and additional assistance aimed at helping families build long-term equity.

Habitat Collier CEO Lisa Lefkow emphasized that the program is not a handout, but a community-driven effort to address the gap in affordable housing.

“There’s so much more that needs to be done, so much more than can be done, and it takes the entire community joining in — volunteers coming out to help keep subcontractor costs low, donors who finance this important work in advance, and then our homeowners who repay that mortgage over time,” Lefkow explained.

Once complete, Majestic Place will include 109 updated single-family homes, along with greenspace, a playground and access to nearby shops.

Habitat Collier says it plans to have families living in every home by next summer.