264-unit affordable housing development approved for 31st Street in St. Petersburg
/St. Pete City Council approved a site plan to construct a 264-unit affordable housing development at 31st Street South and Fairfield Avenue near the Warehouse Arts District.
The project will be located at 31st Street South and Fairfield Avenue.
The project is being developed by Fairfield Avenue Apartments, LLC which is an entity affiliated with HP Capital Group, the team behind Reflection and a 19-story apartment building planned for 1st Avenue North.
The group is under contract to purchase a 6.92-acre site from Tibbetts Lumber Company, which is planning to relocate and consolidate operations to Largo. Plans for the site include an apartment community with three residential buildings wrapping an interior parking lot. One of the buildings would be six stories while the other two would be five stories.
Fairfield Apartments will have three buildings with 264 units.
Tentatively named Fairfield Apartments, the project is located just north of Gibbs High School and the Pinellas Trail and is bound to the east by 31st Street and to the west by 34th Street.
The project is proposed for a site that is zoned Industrial Traditional which typically does not allow for the development of housing.
However, in 2020 the Florida Legislature passed House Bill 1339 which allows local municipalities to “approve the development of housing that is affordable, as defined in s.430.004, on any parcel zoned for residential, commercial, or industrial use.”
The community will feature amenities such as a pool, secure bike areas, picnic area, and computer labs.
In 2021, St. Petersburg became the first city in Florida to pass an ordinance stablishing a process for House Bill 1339 to take effect. Fairfield Avenue apartments is the first project to utilize that process, paving the way for redevelopment of a site that otherwise would not allow housing.
As a result, 100% of the units in the Fairfield Apartments will be income-restricted with 20% of the units being restricted for households making up to 50% of area median income (AMI), 25% of the units being restricted to households making up to 80% of AMI, and 55% being restricted to households making up to 120% of AMI. Area median income is adjusted annually, and units will be priced based on income and household size at the time of leasing.
The project contains a total of 345 vehicular parking spaces along with 278 bicycle parking spaces.
Fairfield Apartments will have 74 one-bedroom units, 162 two-bedroom units, and 28 three-bedroom units.
Amenities at the community include three computer labs, a community room with a kitchen, bike pavilions with bike repair stations, a community pool, a playground, and picnic and barbecue areas. Other amenities include 345 vehicular parking spaces and 278 bicycle parking spaces.
Construction is expected to begin later this year with a completion in 2024.
