On Thursday morning, the Tampa Housing Authority broke ground on 188 affordable apartment rentals. The development is located at 1103 W. Main Street and is part of the ongoing effort to expand the revitalization of downtown west of the Hillsborough River, known as West River. The groundbreaking marks phase 2 of the development process.

The project will include two towers that are complete with a pool, fitness center, and library. They will serve families earning between 22% and 80% of the local AMI. One tower will span five stories with 158 apartments with a mix of 1, 2, and 3 bedrooms. The second tower will be three stories with 30 larger units that include 24 four-bedroom homes at 1,400 SF each.

The project is mainly funded by tax-exempt bonds through the Housing Finance Authority of Hillsborough County. The City of Tampa also contributed $75,000 to the new towers. The West River development spans around 200 acres between I-275 and Columbus Drive and was formerly home to an aging apartment tower for seniors and the North Boulevard Homes, the oldest public housing project in the city.

The development in total will deliver around 1,700 mixed-income rental homes, in addition to 68 homes for ownership. 815 units are completed and 744 are under construction now with the project set to be completed by the end of 2025. A housing authority spokesperson said a Publix Grocery is also in the pipeline.