336-unit apartment development planned for Largo using Florida's Live Local Act
/A rendering of A clubhouse and the apartments at allora | TCR and belleair development group
Pinellas Park-based Belleair Development Group and global real estate firm Trammell Crow Residential will deliver the first workforce housing project in Largo filed under Florida’s new Live Local Act.
The partners filed plans under the act in February to build Allora, a multi-phase apartment community on a 15.5-acre property at 800 8th Avenue Southeast on the corner of 8th Avenue SE and Donegan Road.
A map of the property at 800 8th Avenue Southeast | GOOGLE EARTH
The first phase of Allora calls for 240 total units with 40% set aside for workforce housing.
The second phase would entail two more buildings with 96 additional units, of which 40% would also be dedicated to workforce housing.
"Attainable housing is a huge need, especially in this true housing crisis. We have a prime opportunity to take another go at this site and develop it under the Live Local Act," Belleair Development Group President and owner Christian Yepes said to St. Pete Rising.
Belleair Development Group, which has delivered multiple residential projects throughout St. Petersburg, is co-developing the project with Dallas-based developer Trammell Crow Residential.
"We worked with Christian and Carlos (Christian's father and the company founder) on another deal, and they brought us in on this one," Steven Epps, Managing Director at Trammell Crow Residential, said to St. Pete Rising.
"Pinellas County is a great submarket, and this project represents a joint effort with the City of Largo."
A conceptual rendering of the apartments at Allora | TCR and belleair development group
The project filing from February comes nearly one year after Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed Senate Bill 102, also known as the Live Local Act, as part of a comprehensive, statewide housing strategy to increase the number of affordable and workforce housing units within the state by allowing developers to bypass a slew of required approvals.
The new law mandates that local governments, both the city and the county, must authorize the development of multifamily rentals on sites zoned as mixed-use, commercial, or industrial, with the stipulation that the developer sets aside a minimum of 40% of the units for households making at or below 120% of the area median income for at least 30 years.
"We previously planned to develop multifamily or 200,000 square feet of industrial space because the city favored it, but the neighborhood opposed it," Yepes said, noting the potential for a recycling transfer station, which are typically very highly profitable ventures.
Conceptual site plan for allora | kimley-horn and associates inc.
However, surrounding neighbors strongly contested the industrial project, and a previous plan to develop a multifamily complex, which was presented as an affordable tax credit project.
The objections included concerns related to increased vehicular traffic on the road primarily used by existing residents.
Yepes said Allora's entrance will be located on 8th Avenue to mitigate traffic flow.
Engineering firm Kimley-Horn and Associates Inc., on behalf of the Yepes, filed a stormwater application for the first phase of the Allora Largo project, which entails developing five four-story residential buildings, an amenity center, a parking lot, a stormwater management system, and associated utilities.
Allora's units will range from one-, two-, and three-bedroom layouts with apartments priced from $1,850.
Amenities will include a clubhouse with a fitness center, a pool, a courtyard, a dog park, and nearly 400 surface parking spaces with some electric vehicle charging stations.
Existing conditions of the property | google earth
Belleair Development Group, which purchased the property from Genesis Communications of Tampa Bay in December 2023 for $3.1 million, recently completed extensive environmental testing on the soil, which was deemed safe for development.
Dallas, Texas-based HLR Architects and Atlanta-based B + C Studio Inc. are also on the development team.
Yepes and Epps expect construction on the first phase to commence in October and deliver the first phase of residences by December 2025.
"If things look favorable, we will continue with Phase 2," said Yepes, who does not plan to pursue government funding for the construction of the project.
While Allora is the first and only Live Local project under development in Largo, The City of St. Petersburg received its first development application filed under the new act last month.
