Related Urban, county break ground on affordable housing community

Stirrup Plaza II in Miami
Stirrup Plaza II in Miami

Miami-Dade County and Related Urban broke ground on a public housing project in Miami today.

Stirrup Plaza II, a 68-unit community geared toward low-income seniors and the disabled, is the seventh public housing project developed between the county and Related Urban.

Stirrup Plaza II will be a five-story building at 3160 Mundy Street. Miami-Dade is leasing the property to Related Urban. Stirrup Plaza, built in 1977 for low-income seniors, will continue to operate.

All Stirrup Plaza II units will have one bedroom and one bathroom. Residents making 50 percent of the area median income and below can live in 15 of the units. The remaining 53 units will be set aside for residents making at least 60 percent of the area median income.

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The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development recently expanded the Section 3 program in March, which expands job opportunities for low-income workers.

“We understand the importance of HUD’s Section 3 program. It is a program designed to provide low income individuals access to higher paying jobs, therefore improving their quality of life. It is our responsibility to always try to improve the lives of the residents in the communities that we build in,” Alberto Milo, Jr., Related Urban’s senior vice president and principal, said in a statement.

The city of Miami awarded $2.3 million in federal funding to the building, the county awarded $3.4 million in surtax funding, and the project received $5.2 million in tax credits from the State. The project is scheduled for completion in September 2016.

In March, Related Urban completed a 34-unit affordable housing complex in Miami’s Shenandoah neighborhood. — Katherine Kallergis