Miami lacks affordable housing. A developer is feeding the demand with a $26M project.
With an affordable housing problem in South Florida, and the pandemic expected to make it worse, a South Florida development firm wants to meet some of the demand.
Redwood National Properties, an affiliated company of Wynwood-based BAS Holdings, is moving forward with a $26 million affordable housing project in Opa-locka after receiving a $19 million construction loan. DWNTWN Realty Advisors helped close the loan from City National Bank of Florida on Monday. The project will be the firm’s first development in South Florida.
The rental project, which will accept Section 8 Housing Choice vouchers, will deliver 112 townhouses on a 10-acre property. Each townhouse will be two stories and span about 1,550 square feet with four bedrooms, and 2 1/2 bathrooms. The development will rise across from Mitchell Lake at 1719 NW 143rd St. Construction is anticipated to take 18 months.
“Our firm has transacted in many states throughout the U.S., however we were inclined to focus on a project in our backyard whereby we could make a difference for the local community. There is a major need for affordable housing in South Florida. We plan to create supply for this high demand,” Brian Sidman said in an email to the Miami Herald. Sidman is the principal and founder of BAS Holdings.
Sidman declined to comment on how much rent will be.
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The new townhouses will be part of the existing Mirage at Sailboat Cove, a gated community. The development has 59 townhouses with some constructed in 2007 and others in 2014. The existing townhouses will remain.
The original developer of Mirage at Sailboat Cove, Sailboat Cove Ventures, faced a $9 million foreclosure by Mercantil Bank during the Great Recession in 2009.
The location appealed to the firm, Sidman said. The community is a 10-minute drive east of the Amazon Mega Warehouse and a seven-minute drive west of I-95.
“This pocket in Opa-Locka is positioned in a location easily accessible for employees to get to work in Broward or Dade County thus is prime for affordable housing,” he said.
