A nonprofit affordable housing developer is building a $52.7 million apartment complex near Gould in Miami-Dade County.
The planned projects mark a continued bet on South Miami-Dade County and affordable housing at a time when rents for many South Florida locals remain unaffordable at market rates.
Preservation of Affordable Housing (POAH) is developing Meridian Point, a 113-unit, two-building complex at Goulds Station on the corner of US 1st and SW 216th Street, according to a developer press release. Meridian Point will consist of a seven-story, 80-unit building and a three-story, 33-unit building. Both will offer one- to three-bedroom apartments.
The nonprofit owns 3 acres of vacant space at 11850 SW 216th Street. The company paid nearly $2 million for the property in two transactions in 2019 and 2020, records show.
A POAH spokesman said construction began in March and is expected to be completed by the third quarter of next year.
The financing package includes a $25.5 million tax-free construction loan from Capital One through the Miami-Dade County Housing Finance Authority; $23.1 million in equity investments from Hudson Capital and Capital One; and $7.3 million from the Florida Housing Finance Corporation Various loans; the county also provided $2.6 million in additional tax loans, according to the release. Citi Community Capital also provided an $11.6 million permanent senior mortgage loan.
Under the project-based Section 8 contract, the majority of the apartments (68 apartments) will be reserved for residents of Cutler Manor at 10875 SW 216th Street. In 2008, POAH purchased the 218-unit Cutler Manor and then spent $4 million on a renovation of the building.
The remaining Meridian Point units at Goulds Station (ie 45 units) will serve families earning up to 80% of the area median income. Based on Miami-Dade County’s current AMI of $74,700, single-person households can earn up to $57,840, two-person households can earn up to $66,080, and three-person households can earn up to $74,320. Florida Housing Finance Corporation Data.
According to its website, POAH, under the leadership of Aaron Gornstein, develops, owns and manages about 13,000 affordable housing units in the United States.The nonprofit has offices in Boston, Chicago, and Washington, D.C.
Last summer, the company announced a big purchase of apartment properties near the Obama Presidential Center in Chicago. These include plans to complete the purchase of a 318-unit complex called Jackson Park Terrace, located across the street from downtown.
In Miami-Dade County, POAH’s portfolio includes the 201-unit Campbell Arms at 800 NE 12th Avenue in Homestead; the 123-unit Southpoint Crossing at 897 West Lucy Street in Florida ; Cutler Meadows Glen Apartments, located at 11100 SW 196th Street in unincorporated South Miami-Dade County, has 225 apartments, according to the nonprofit’s website.
The vast supply of land in South Miami-Dade County is at a discount to the price of downtown development land. As a result, the area has attracted multifamily and affordable housing developers.
In Gould, the Ricadri Group, led by Adriana Guerrero, submitted a proposal last month for a 93-unit project at 21300 and 21320 SW 112th Avenue.
Atlantic Pacific is looking to develop a 116-unit affordable housing complex on the Heritage Village II public housing complex site at the northeast corner of SW 270th Street and SW 142nd Avenue in Naranja. The plan is part of Atlantic Pacific’s agreement with Miami-Dade County to redevelop four public housing complexes with a total of 605 income-restricted units.
