Miami, July 25 —The Gatehouse Group, Inc. and The Carrie Meek Foundation, in partnership with Miami-Dade County and the City of Miami, will hold the official groundbreaking ceremony of a new affordable apartment community, Lafayette Plaza Apartments, on Thursday, August 2 at 10:00 am.

People in attendance will include: Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Alvarez, Miami-Dade County Commissioner Audrey Edmonson, City of Miami Mayor Manny Diaz, City of Miami Commissioner Michelle Spence-Jones, and various other County and City officials.

Lafayette Plaza is the second phase of a two-phase development. The first 160-unit phase, Lafayette Square, is currently under construction and will be completed by December 2007. Lafayette Plaza’s total construction cost will be $33,825,899. $5,250,000 will be subsidized by Miami-Dade County and $1,166,507 will be subsidized by the City of Miami. The rest of the financing will be provided by Federal Tax Credit Equity, administered by Florida Housing Finance Corporation, and a first mortgage through Bank of America.

Lafayette Plaza Apartments, a new 136-unit affordable rental housing community, offers distinctly designed apartment homes created for working families. Its location near the 79th Street Corridor makes it the perfect place to call home. Located in the heart of Little Haiti, Lafayette Plaza is convenient to downtown employment centers, schools, medical care, places of worship, shopping and entertainment. With Miami-Dade Transit bus service at their doorstop, the residents of Lafayette Plaza are just minutes from North Miami Beach, and the Design District. The architecture of this apartment community will complement the historic nature of this Little Haiti neighborhood.

Lafayette Plaza Apartments is “income-restricted,” meaning units in the new community are available only to households within a designated income range. All residents’ income must be at or below 60% AMI (Area Median Income), with 15% of the residents having an income at 33% AMI or below. The expected (updated annually) 60% rents will be $567 for one-bedrooms, $677 for two-bedrooms, and $775 for three-bedrooms. The expected rents for residents at 33% AMI or below will be $284 for one-bedrooms, $337 for two-bedrooms, and $382 for three-bedrooms. At 33% AMI, a family of four must earn $18,447 or less. At 60% AMI, a family of four must earn $33,540 or less. Financing packages and tax incentives are provided to the developer to keep costs down and rates low, which enables them to provide an outstanding living environment at far below market prices. Lafayette Plaza Apartments is expected to be completed by the end of 2008 and will be rent-restricted for a minimum of 50 years.

The Gatehouse Group, Inc. and its property management affiliate, Gatehouse Management, Inc., have a proven 15-year track record in the State of Florida as a private for-profit company that delivers quality affordable housing. Gatehouse has developed and is currently managing over 5,000 rental apartments in Florida.

The Carrie Meek Foundation is a non-profit founded by Congresswoman Carrie Meek, who was an influential member of the Florida Legislature and Congress. Her foundation is committed to the premise that in an era when so many Floridians have attained great affluence, every citizen must have a decent place to live.

The residents of Lafayette Plaza Apartments will benefit from a broad range of home living amenities, open and available to all residents, including a community center, a computer lab education center, a library, a fitness center, a playground/tot lot, a car care area, a covered picnic area with barbecue, and on-site laundry facilities. It will be a gated community with carded entry. It will have security, management, and maintenance on-site 24 hours.

Every Lafayette Plaza Apartment home is equipped with washer and dryer hookups, decorator-designed kitchens with a frost-free refrigerator and garbage disposal, highly efficient air conditioning, ceiling fans, custom mini-blinds, and cable television hookup access.

There are many programs to satisfy the educational and social desires and needs of all Lafayette Plaza Apartment residents. These services include home-ownership incentives, a resident council, job skills training, and various social activities.
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The Carrie Meek Foundation, Inc.
Miami, FL
305-953-0525 Phone
info@CarrieMeekFoundation.org