New Fort Lauderdale apartment will offer ‘luxury' affordable housing to city's workforce
First responders and local government employees will get first dibs on a new 'luxury' workforce housing development that recently broke ground in Fort Lauderdale.
Affiliated Development, a South Florida-based firm that specializes in public-private partnerships, announced last week it began construction on The Era, an 8-story multifamily apartment building located on South Andrews Avenue between SW 21st Street and SW 22nd Street. The building, backed by tax incentives, will be completed in 2027, said Nick Rojo, an Affiliated co-founder.
The Era will dedicate over half of its 400 units for workforce housing residents earning between 80% and 120% of the area median income. Unit prices will vary depending on residents' incomes, Rojo said. The lowest rates will be about $700 below market rate; the highest will be about $400 below market rate.
Prospective residents can apply for units closer to The Era's completion, with preference given to first responders and local government workers. The Era is situated close to the county's largest employers, namely Broward Health, the federal courthouse, Port Everglades, the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood International Airport, the Broward County Convention Center and downtown Fort Lauderdale.
'It'll give them the opportunity to live where they serve, so to speak, and have a nice apartment,' Rojo said.
Construction began after Affiliated secured tax incentives from the City of Fort Lauderdale and Broward County along with a $80 million first mortgage from the Bank of Montreal, an equity investment from Affiliated Housing Impact Fund, LP and several private family offices. The City of Fort Lauderdale agreed to reimburse 100% of the city taxes Affiliated pays for 15 years. Broward County agreed to a 30-year deal to reimburse about half of the taxes, or $5.5 million.
Developments like The Era are 'impossible' without public support, Rojo said, adding that the revenue made back from reimbursements is what allows The Era to provide its upscale amenities while keeping rates low. Residents will have access to a parking garage, co-working space, bike-share program, coffee bar, fitness center, sauna, cold plunge, mini golf, dog park and a roof top observation deck with views of downtown.
The Era is being built by Fort Lauderdale-based general contractor Moss and Associated and was designed by architecture firm A+R.
'Our goal is to create a living experience that is the same as any other luxury, class-A apartment building. You have all the features and amenities you'd otherwise have at a market-rate building. And the way we accomplish that is through incentives,' Rojo said. 'You can't do what we're doing without participation from the city, the state or the county. It doesn't work.'
Local government officials are celebrating the partnership as a way to help address the area's housing calamity.
'At a time where the cost of living is making housing less affordable for many of our residents, government and the private sector must come together to undertake creative solutions,' Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis said in a statement. 'As mayor, I am excited to collaborate with Affiliated Development to bring high-end attainably priced housing to the south portion of our downtown.'
Affiliated is behind several similar developments in the region, including Tropic Hollywood, where half of its 200 units will be for workforce housing and The Spruce in West Palm Beach, where 43% of its 270 units will be for workforce housing.
The ongoing development efforts come as an affordable housing crisis continues embroiling South Florida, where residents are the most rent-burdened people in the country. More than three-quarters of South Floridians struggle to pay for usual household expenses, according to the Census Bureau's Household Pulse Survey. Last year, the Sun Sentinel reported, Broward County approved a 10-year plan to create housing to address an estimated shortage of nearly 73,000 affordable houses and 74,000 rental apartments countywide.
'There's an incredible need for these types of projects, and unfortunately, it just requires a lot of work and public support,' Rojo said. 'These deals are are to put together, it's hard to make the numbers work, but I'm glad Broward County and the City of Fort Lauderdale have recognized this is a problem and are doing what they can to help fix it.'
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