Denver-based Ulysses Development Group is set to break ground on an affordable housing community near Orange Blossom Trail, in an area where several other income-stricted housing projects are in the works.
Osprey Sound is planned for a vacant property at 5453 Rio Grande Ave. and will deliver 100 apartments for residents aged 62 and older. The community, expected to open at the end of next year, will offer one-, two-, and three-bedroom units for seniors earning between 50-70% of the area median income (AMI). Residents will also have access to a gym, a business center, a multi-purpose space for resident activities and crafts, and a pool.
Ulysses Development additionally plans to enhance the appearance of the five-story building through multiple art installations made by local artists.
“We’ve engaged a local consultant. It’s called Local Arts. They’re local to Central Florida, and they are going to help us identify at least three different artists who will develop and install large-scale local arts installations in the community. We expect there’ll be at least one on the exterior and a few on the interior as well,” said Ryan Watt, Assistant Vice President of Development at Ulysses Development.
The developer purchased the roughly 15-acre property last year for $4 million and is ready to break ground on the project after securing all of the necessary financing. Ulysses Development received a $7 million loan last year from Orange County’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund, which awarded a total of $21 million to five developers.
The Florida Housing Finance Corporation also awarded $22.38 million in tax-exempt bond financing, about $1.7 million in annual low-income housing tax credits, and $4.3 million in subordinate Viability Loan Funds. Synovus Bank also provided both a tax credit equity investment and construction period debt financing.
“Affordable housing development has been more challenging in recent years. Some of the primary reasons are construction costs, inflation, and also interest rate volatility. Those things have put financial strain on affordable housing developments. I think we’ve been fortunate that in the state of Florida that there are several agencies that have been active in supporting affordable housing developments,” Watt said.
This will be Ulysses Development’s first ground-up development in Florida, but the developer previously purchased the nearby 272-unit Citrus Glen Apartments in 2021 for $37 million.
There are several other affordable housing developments planned for the immediate area along the Orange Blossom Trail corridor. For example, Miami-based Archway Partners held a groundbreaking ceremony in April for The Enclave at Canopy Park, which will deliver 104 affordable apartments on 3.3 acres at 4475 S. Rio Grand Ave. once it opens next year.
Maitland-based Birdsong Housing Partners also filed plans earlier this year for 92 affordable apartments on 12.9 acres at 4800 S. Orange Blossom Trail. The units would be reserved for residents earning between 40% and 60% of AMI.
Nearby, Miami-based REZ SE Land, LLC plans to build The Alton at Lake Bumby, a proposed 256-unit community on 9.6 acres at 4893 S Orange Blossom Trail. The units would be market rate, but developer Saul Perez said that he plans to develop the project as an attainable community.
Further north along OBT, St. Petersburg-based developer Hunter Brady wants to build a 105-unit apartment building at 1342 30th St. that would be entirely affordable for residents earning at or below 80% of AMI.
Georgia-based NuRock Properties is also planning another affordable housing project, a couple of miles north on 1.5 acres of city-owned land at 1246 W. Jefferson St. The plans call for a five- to seven-story building with ground-floor retail and 140 apartments set aside for residents earning between 30% and 80% of AMI.
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