RIVIERA BEACH, Fla. — South Florida’s housing crisis continues to impact hard working families, but now there is hope coming to a local city in Palm Beach County.
Riviera Beach broke ground on a new affordable housing complex for low-income families along the revitalized stretch of Broadway Avenue on Tuesday.
It’s called Berkeley Landing, and it will be built on a vacant lot along US-1.
“This is critical,” said Riviera Beach City Manager Jonathan Evans. “This type of development is going to create synergy within the corridor and is going to allow for additional economic development within our city.”
The three-story project will include 110 units consisting of one, two, and three bedroom apartments.
Amenities include a clubhouse, pool and cabanas, fitness center, cyber lounge, covered pavilion, playground, and enclosed dog walk area. Sculpture art will be installed in two civic plazas dedicated to the city along Broadway and Lake Shore Drive.
“We have hard surface flooring and counter tops throughout, we have impact resistant windows and energy star appliances all throughout the units,” said Regional Vice President Pinnacle Communities Tim Wheat.
The development will help tackle the current housing crisis and cater to low-income families.
“Health care workers and municipal workers, teachers, firefighters and entry-level folks that are often priced out of conventional housing,” said Wheat.
It will also feature two live/work spaces for local entrepreneurs like Nicole Thomas, who has already been named as one of the prospective residents.
"My storefront will be downstairs, and my living quarters will be above," said Thomas.
She’s a massage therapist who has struggled to find housing while trying to grow her own business.
“I was considering if I would be able to stay in this area and when this opportunity came up, it was so huge,” Thomas said.
With Berkeley Landing, she'll finally be able to secure an affordable place to call home and the opportunity to expand.
“Having this new space will allow me to bring in an esthetician and a stretch practitioner, so we can do collaborative efforts and give more to the community,” she said.
Berkeley Landing will be built by PCDS Construction, an experienced joint venture between D. Stephenson Construction, South Florida’s largest minority-owned construction firm and PC Building, LLC, Pinnacle’s construction affiliate.
The project is set to be completed by the end of next year.
For more information about Berkeley Landing, click here.