ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Land along Fairfield Avenue South where warehouses and a lumberyard currently stand will soon be cleared to make way for affordable housing.
The change comes after St. Pete City Council unanimously approved an application to switch up the land's use during Thursday's meeting.
Developer HP Capital Group is looking to build 264 affordable and workforce units on the nearly 7-acre site by 2024. With its application approved, a representative of the developer says once the project breaks ground it will take 14 months to construct the community.
The Fairfield Avenue Apartments, located at 3300 Fairfield Ave. S., will be a multi-family community consisting of three buildings, 345 parking spaces and bike parking, according to the application.
A total of 53 units will be held for those at or below 50-percent of the area median income, while 67 units will be allocated to those at or below 80-percent of the area median income. The remaining 144 units will be for those making 120-percent or below the area median income.
The project also has a "restrictive covenant" for affordability for 30 years. The complex will also accept HUD vouchers, according to a developer representative.
The ability for city council members to approve turning the land into an affordable housing community comes from HB 1339, which passed during the 2020 legislative session. The bill "included a provision allowing the governing body of a municipality to approve an affordable development on any parcel zoned for residential. commercial or industrial use."
Then in September 2021, St. Pete City Council members approved an ordinance creating a process for an application to apply for such a consideration that "would otherwise not be permitted" in other types of zoning districts.
According to documents filed on the project, the application for Fairfield Avenue Apartments is the first submitted for review under the newly established process.
