As the population of South Florida continues to mushroom, its affordable housing crisis grows in virtual lockstep with that boom. According to nonprofit Miami Homes For All, there exists a dearth of more than 90,000 homes across the Tri-County area for households earning less than 80 percent of the AMI of approximately $75,000 yearly.
Fortunately for the region’s workforce — as well as its future viability — high-end real estate developers have been incentivized to develop affordable housing. The impetus for that movement has been Florida’s Live Local Act, which galvanizes mixed-use and multifamily developers to address the affordability crisis by offering them tax breaks. In exchange for those breaks, developers set aside at least 71 units within a development for below-market rates affordable by households earning at or below 120% of AMI.
The result has been development of affordable housing bearing scant resemblance to what passed for housing in Miami’s past. The affordable communities of yesteryear skimped on design quality and amenities as a way to pare costs to the bone.
By contrast, this era’s affordable properties serve up many traits of today’s high-end residences, from in-demand amenities like pickleball courts, rooftop terraces, children’s playgrounds and upscale fitness centers to sumptuous apartment features and finishes: Stainless steel appliances, floor-to-ceiling windows and brand name cabinetry.
Michael Swerdlow, managing partner of SG Holdings, is among developers taking a fresh approach to affordable housing in and near the Magic City. He has called the shortage in Miami-Dade County “the largest affordability crisis in the nation,” one that has displaced some senior citizens, who are struggling against homelessness. “I don’t like seeing people living in deplorable conditions, so I wanted to provide affordable housing that doesn’t sacrifice quality,” he says of Miami’s Sawyer’s Walk.
“These apartments look just like market-rate apartments. As a real estate development company, we are focused on building legacy projects for the communities in most need in South Florida at a critical time when the region faces housing and affordability crises.”
Accessible Examples
Sawyer’s Walk is a 1.5 million-square-foot, mixed-use development in the historic Overtown enclave of Miami, the most venerable African-American community in Miami-Dade. The largest affordable housing development delivered in the U.S. in the last 10 years, Sawyer’s Walk is intended for low-income seniors. It offers pedestrian-friendly access to stores situated within the development, among them Target, Aldi and Ross Dress for Less. It’s also steps from Metrorail, Metromover and Brightline public transit.
Another new property, Laguna Gardens in the city of Miami Gardens, is among the first multifamily developments delivered under the Live Local Act. Developed by Asi Cymbal, chairman of Cymbal DLT, the 341-unit apartment community was imbued with a modern design aesthetic by Jo Palma and Partners, an acclaimed global architectural firm.
Those residing in the affordable apartments enjoy such amenities as a lakeside walking and running trail, pet care area, summer kitchen and community barbecue area.
Great Impact
The next example of the Live Local Act’s impact, this one still on the drawing boards, is Bal Harbour Shops, in Bal Harbour. To be developed by Whitman Family Development, the community will feature 600 upscale residences. Forty percent of the units will be earmarked for workforce housing serving teachers, first responders, hospitality employees and other workers representing the backbone of the community.
SG Holdings’ next planned project, located in Miami’s Little River District in the Little Haiti neighborhood, is slated to involve 7,500 residential units, including affordable, workforce and market-rate housing, along with plentiful retail and green space as well as a new Tri-Rail transit station. “At this stage in my career,” Swerdlow says, “there is no greater impact I can make than focusing on delivering quality housing for those who need it most in our community.”
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