A project to bring more than 150 workforce housing units to Bradenton is moving forward, thanks to a loan from Manatee County as well as investment from local employers.
Forest Cove of Manatee LLC, under affordable housing developer One Stop Housing, received approval from Manatee County commissioners for a $5.66 million catalytic loan during the board’s April 15 meeting.
One Stop Housing plans to use the loan — defined, essentially, as a loan for a project or development that can be a catalyst for social good — in conjunction with funding from banks and local employers to create 156 workforce housing units at 1478 45th Ave. Circle West. The site is near the intersection of Cortez Road West and 14th Street West, a few miles south of downtown Bradenton.
“We think this is going to be a game changer, a real strategic advantage for these employers participating in this,” Mark Vengroff, managing partner of One Stop Housing, tells the Business Observer. “They’re all struggling with recruitment and retention” of employees due in part to housing costs.
Before putting together the plan for Forest Cove, Vengroff says the Bradenton Area Economic Development Corp. surveyed 700 employees and found 78% were cost-burdened by housing.
Once built, Forest Cove will contain studio apartments as well as one, two and three-bedroom units on 2.17 acres.
Apartments will be priced below market rate so employees do not have to spend more than 30% of their wages on housing, according to Vengroff.
A dog park, pool, playground, laundry facility and outside barbecue area will be part of the community, in addition to a clubhouse that may also contain a daycare or telehealth center. Unit sizes and amenities were designed based on EDC surveys of area employees.
To be able to live at Forest Cove, tenants must be employees of companies that have signed on as investors. So far, that list includes Cirrus Aviation; CareerSource; Goodwill Manasota; Anna Maria Oyster Bar parent company Oysters Rock Hospitality; S&B Metals; Spirit Movers; and One Stop Housing Development and Construction.
Participating employers will have an equity stake in the investment, according to Vengroff, who says April 16 room remains for about six more employers to participate. One Stop plans to donate about six or seven of its apartments to county law enforcement, he notes.
The public-private partnership could create a model for other jurisdictions, Vengroff adds.
“We were approached by four other counties already to go into their county and develop exactly the same thing with their local employers,” Vengroff tells the Business Observer. “We’re doing this one first to get it off the ground.”
Make ends meet
The project came to fruition because of a lack of housing for those struggling to afford market rate prices yet who make too much to qualify for government-set “affordable housing,” which is open to those making less than 60% of an area’s annual median income, according to Vengroff.
“Our core workforce — 75% — earn between 60% and 80% AMI,” Vengroff says. “Everywhere you go, true workforce housing is No. 1 on everyone’s list.”
Workforce housing was at the top of an agenda for a Bradenton Area EDC roundtable he attended, where he says he initially presented his idea for a partnership involving employers. Since then, he has partnered with the EDC to bring the concept to fruition.
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Forest Cove is a “creative solution to our workforce housing challenge here in Manatee County,” Sharon Hillstrom, president and CEO of the Bradenton Area EDC, told county commissioners during a December briefing on the project.
“One of the biggest challenges” for employers is that their workers “can’t afford to live here,” Hillstrom said, adding she has been working with Vengroff on Forest Cove for two years, and they met with about 50 employers in the county to pitch the proposal of partnering with them in its development.
Bridge the gap
One Stop Housing representatives estimate the project will cost $26.84 million, including about $19 million in hard costs related to construction.That works out to approximately $128,000 per door, according to Vengroff, who says his organization can keep costs down by acting as the licensed contractor, developer, roofer, electrician and plumber and operates with a “very low margin.”
To “make the capital stack work,” Vengroff told commissioners in December, One Stop Housing was putting down $6.6 million in cash. He said the organization was not looking for a grant or handout but a catalytic loan for the project to provide “what the bank needs in order to allow us to finance it.”
Construction costs have not gone up since December, Vengroff tells the Business Observer,and instead might be a little better than they were.
In agreeing to provide the $5.66 million catalytic loan, commissioners approved the resolution by a 5-0 vote April 15, with two commissioners absent.
“I think this is going to be an amazing project in the right location,” Manatee Commission Chair George Kruse said after the approval. “This is truly an effort to provide what the community needs.”
Currently about 36 affordable housing units exist at the Forest Cove Apartments. Once work begins on the project to build the 156-unit community, Vengroff says his organization will work with tenants to find availability at its other affordable housing locations.
“We’ve got 4,000 apartments, quite a few of which are in the Manatee County area already,” Vengroff says of One Stop Housing. It manages Robin’s Apartments, El Patio Bradenton and Omega Apartments in the county.
Next steps for Forest Cove include submitting the site plan and building plans for approval, Vengroff says. He expects to break ground on the project by November or December. Construction should be complete by January 2028.
