Oct. 7--DELRAY BEACH -- City Commissioners gave two-thumbs-up to the developer of Villages at Delray to bring in $27 million in stimulus money to the city.

Despite years of quarreling with the Housing Authority and overwhelming community angst, the commission -- with a 3-2 vote -- approved the Auburn Group's controversial, all-affordable, rental community in the city's Southwest Neighborhood.

"We need jobs and we do need affordable housing," said Commissioner Angeleta Gray.

Gray, who was appointed to the commission last month, had voted against the project repeatedly as a board member of the Community Redevelopment Agency.

Gray said she did not understand then that the project would be serving very-low income as well as low-income residents.

"I would qualify to live in this project," Gray said.

The project is a version of a plan that the Auburn group has originally proposed building in partnership with the Delray Beach Housing Authority on land owned by both.

But the marriage between the authority and the developer has been on the rocks for more than a year. Part of the dispute emerged when Auburn changed the plan to take advantage of state grants and tax credits. Instead of a mixed-income rental community, it wanted to offer apartments with rents ranging from $726 to $934 for one- to three-bedroom units, some of which could be subsidized. The change did not win widespread community support.

But the project is shovel ready, and it was awarded a combination of state grants and stimulus money. Work must begin by December for the city to get the money. Also, the Treasury Department wants to follow the project from beginning to end as an example of community building.

The community wasn't sold on it and the CRA and the Planning and Zoning Board unanimously voted against the project.

Residents were concerned that Auburn would build another Auburn Trace -- the affordable-housing community that the new project would replace. Some residents said Auburn Trace was beautiful when it was built, then left to deteriorate.

"They want to tear this clubhouse one down and build a new one," said Benny Goodman, president of the Delray Heights Homeowners Association. "If they didn't maintain the first one, what makes you think they're going to maintain the second one?"

Bonnie Elrod, who was among the residents who developed the Southwest Neighborhood Redevelopment Plan cautioned officials about misusing stimulus money to build a low-income community where there already is one.

"Will we be an All-America city, or another bridge to nowhere," Elrod said.

Commissioners Fred Fetzer and Gary Eliopoulos, the two "No" votes, said the project is not consistent with the city's land regulations and it would be a detriment to the neighborhood.

"I'm not going to decide to accept the stimulus money under these circumstances," Fetzer said.

Eliopoulos agreed.

"As much as this money is important to me I'm not going to sell out the neighborhood for this," he said.

Maria Herrera can be reached at meherrera@sun-sentinel.com or 561-243-6544.

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