Proposed Creekside Village project could add more Bradenton-area affordable housing

James A. Jones Jr.
·4 min read
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Creekside Village, planned for 198 multifamily residential units with at least 25% of those designated as affordable housing, is set to come before the Manatee County Planning Commission on Thursday.

The complex, planned for a 24-acre site on the north and south sides of 58th Avenue East, about 400 feet east of 33rd Street East, is the latest project proposed in response to the Bradenton-area housing crisis.

In Southwest Florida there are 13 prospective renters for every vacant apartment, and units stay vacant for an average of only 34 days. For anyone looking to buy a house, prices remain near historic highs, a daunting challenge for first-time home buyers.

The developer for Creekside Village is The Creek LLC with Yaron Devald of Sarasota listed as the manager and Hila Erez Cohen of New York City listed as the chief financial officer, according to reports filed with the Florida Secretary of State’s Office.

The property is just to the east of Community of Christ Church, 5817 33rd St. E., Bradenton.

Residents in the neighboring Garden Lakes community have raised a number of concerns about the Creekside Village project, including losing privacy and the wooded area behind their homes, increased flooding, noise, traffic and threats to endangered species, including gopher tortoises.

Glen Gibellina, a member of the Manatee County Affordable Housing Advisory Committee, previously told the Bradenton Herald that more developers are planning to build affordable or workforce housing than in previous years.

“We’ve gotten more workforce housing in the last two years than in the previous 10,” Gibellina previously said.

In Manatee County, workforce housing is for individuals making between about $51,000 and $77,000 a year or a four-person household with a total income between $73,000 and $110,000. Typically, the program is targeted at households that earn too much to qualify for traditional affordable housing subsidies.

Affordable housing is meant to provide a place to live that costs no more than 30% of a resident’s income for rent or mortgage payments. Those households may be eligible for subsidized housing.

To encourage the development of affordable housing, Manatee County government offers expedited processing, fee assistance and other incentives.

Creekside Village, planned for 198 multifamily residential units with at least 25% of those designated as affordable housing, would be built on the north and south sides of 58th Avenue East, about 400 feet east of 33rd Street East, Bradenton.
Creekside Village, planned for 198 multifamily residential units with at least 25% of those designated as affordable housing, would be built on the north and south sides of 58th Avenue East, about 400 feet east of 33rd Street East, Bradenton.

Other projects in the works

▪ Bradenton Project LLC of Summerville, S.C., plan to build a 96-unit apartment complex at 2008 53rd Ave. E. in Oneco. The project, which would include four buildings with 24 units each, received affordable/workforce housing eligibility on June 23.

▪ A 606-unit affordable housing apartment complex, named Amara, is proposed for a 20-acre parcel at 3308 Lena Road. Seeking approvals is WB Property Group, an owner-developer of real estate headquartered in New York City.

▪ A total of 572 units of multi-family affordable housing are planned for 4505 12th St. Ct. E., including 301 Flats with 324 units of family housing and The Savoy at 301 with 248 units of senior housing. The developer is Oneco 51 Family Gp LLC of Santa Monica, Calif.

The planned Creekside Village apartments property is just to the east of Community of Christ Church, 5817 33rd St. E., Bradenton.
The planned Creekside Village apartments property is just to the east of Community of Christ Church, 5817 33rd St. E., Bradenton.

▪ Whitfield Estates LLC is seeking to build 192 one- and two-bedroom units on 10 acres in the 7200 block of 12th Street East.

▪ The Nine20 Manatee apartments, planned for 137 units, with rents ranging from about $1,300 for a one-bedroom unit to $1,600 for a two-bedroom unit, are under construction at 920 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton.

▪ The three-story Oneco Living Apartments is planned for 94 rental units on 5.3 acres of vacant land just north of State Road 70. The majority of the units will be rented at market rate, but 24 of those apartments in the 5100 block of 18th Street Court East will be designated affordable housing.

▪ Hope Village, dedicated to keeping at-risk parents housed and on the path to economic independence, is planned by Help to Home, a local nonprofit organization and homeless resource group. Envisioned are at least 53 apartment units on 4.8 acres at 1825 30th Ave. W. in Bradenton.

▪ Housing Trust Group plans to build a five-story, 120-unit complex for seniors on the northwest corner of Ninth Street West and 23rd Avenue West in Bradenton.

▪ The Met, a $31 million workforce housing project, will include 199 units of eco-friendly apartments on a three-acre site at 1405 14th St., Bradenton.

▪ A workforce housing community of about 400 units is being pursued by a partnership of local businesses, One Stop Housing and the Bradenton Area Economic Development Corporation. A location and timeline have not been announced.

Completed projects

▪ Housing Trust Group has opened the 90-unit Addison apartments, 702 Sixth Ave. E., Bradenton, and the 96-unit Oaks at Lakeside complex, 5260 34th Street Cir. E., Bradenton.

▪ Riverview6, an 80-unit affordable housing complex near downtown Bradenton, is also in the works and set to open in early 2024.

▪ The Sandpiper Place Apartments, 4605 26th St. W., Bradenton, opened Feb. 15, 2022, with all 92 units rented, and a waiting list of more than 800 people.