Pinellas Aims To Provide More Affordable Homes For Residents

PINELLAS COUNTY, FL — A pair of new housing developments supported by Pinellas County are bringing 153 new affordable homes to the community, and hundreds more are on the horizon through a growing program for local and national developers.

Applications opened this month for the third round of funding for housing development projects.

Completed in late January and early February, the two newly constructed apartment communities are offering affordable housing units reserved for specific household income levels.

Eagle Ridge, located at 721 Mango Circle in Tarpon Springs, offers 71 apartment units, while Palmetto Pointe, located at 8011 49th Street North in Pinellas Park, offers 82 units. Residents are already beginning to move into their new homes in both communities.

These completed developments were built by SP Pinellas I LLC and Eagle Ridge Apartments LLLP and partially funded through Pinellas County’s HOME and HUD Neighborhood Stabilization Program 2(NSP2) funds, which provided a combined $1.8 million toward the two projects. The apartments are reserved for households making 60 percent of the area median income or less.

New Application Cycle Begins For Penny For Pinellas Affordable Housing Program

The third round of applications for the Penny for Pinellas Affordable Housing Program opened this month to support qualified housing development and rehabilitation projects in Pinellas County. The county invites applicants, including developers who specialize in affordable housing and those who traditionally build market-rate developments, as well as municipal and nonprofit partners, to apply.

Those interested can learn more and apply online through March 31 here.

The Pinellas County Board of County Commissioners recently approved funding support for 412 affordable and workforce housing units to be built over the next few years through the program.

Penny for Pinellas Affordable Housing Program funds may be used for land acquisition or for capital projects associated with the development, construction or rehabilitation of housing units for the local workforce. To qualify, prospective projects must include units for income-qualified households.

Project applications for Round 3 will be reviewed in April, and those selected will go to the county commission for approval in May. Round 2 applications are currently under review, and a fourth round of applications is expected to open later this year.

The Penny for Pinellas Affordable Housing Program, launched in June, is funded by revenue from the voter-approved 1 percent Penny for Pinellas sales tax. The county has committed $80 million of this tax revenue through 2030 to use for public and private investment for the development and preservation of affordable housing units.

In the past 10 years, Pinellas County has supported development and preservation of more than 2,900 affordable housing units through a combination of local, state and federal partnerships.

The county is also partnering with cities, developers, nonprofits and other agencies as part of a countywide strategy to ensure housing affordability in the future.

Round 1 Penny For Pinellas Affordable Housing Program Applications Approved

In January, the Pinellas Board of County Commissioners approved maximum funding amounts for four Penny for Pinellas Affordable Housing Program applications from the first round, totaling up to $11.6 million. The approved projects will create 412 affordable housing units for Pinellas County residents.

Approved Penny for Pinellas Round 1 projects include:

Skyway Lofts by Blue Sky Communities (3900 34th St. S., St. Petersburg):

• New construction of 65-unit multi-family affordable apartment community
• All units restricted by household income compared to the area median income
• Approved county funding: $700,000 for land acquisition
• Estimated construction completion: September 2021

The Shores by Richman Group (26th Avenue South and 31st Street South, St. Petersburg):

• New construction of 51-unit multi-family apartment building
• All units restricted by household income compared to the AMI
• Approved county funding: $750,000 for land acquisition
• Estimated construction completion: May 2022

New Northeast by Stock Development (5475 3rd Lane N., St. Petersburg):

• New construction of 415-unit mixed-income rental apartment community
• 125 affordable units restricted by household income compared to the AMI
• Approved county funding: $4 million for capital improvement construction
• Estimated construction completion: August 2022

Washington Avenue Apartments by Southport (306 S. Washington Ave., Clearwater):

• New construction of 171-unit workforce housing apartment community
• All units restricted by household income compared to the AMI
• Approved county funding: $5.62 million for land acquisition and capital improvement construction
• Estimated construction completion: December 2022

See related stories:

• Summit Aims To Bring More Affordable Housing To Pinellas County
• Pinellas Celebrates Opening Of Affordable Apartment Complex