MIAMI-DADE – On Monday, April 28, Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava and Miami-Dade County Board of County Commission Vice Chairman Kionne L. McGhee, along with the DBC Procida development team, will break ground on Homestead Gardens Phase I, the first phase of a new affordable housing community in Homestead being developed through the RAD conversion of an existing aging affordable complex.Homestead Gardens Phase I apartments will consist of 162 residences: 81 units are under the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program, which replaces existing public housing units one-for-one with Section 8 Project-Based Voucher units meant for returning public housing residents and qualifying residents with incomes of 30% and 50% of the Average Median Income (AMI) in Miami-Dade County; the other 81 units will be affordable mixed-income housing units, and the Miami-Dade County Housing and Community Development (HCD) has provided 20 additional Section 8 Project-Based Vouchers for some of these units.

This residential community will be built with sustainable materials and systems and will be green certified as NGBS Silver (National Green Building Standard). Amenities will include a community room for residents, which will include a heating kitchen, a gym, bicycle storage room, outdoor playground and community gardens. All apartment units will have modern and sustainable finishes and will include central air conditioning systems and washer and dryers.

Construction on Homestead Gardens Phase I is expected to be finished by the end of 2026. This project is the first of three phases that Miami-Dade County and DBC Procida are working on to redevelop the 150 units of Miami-Dade County managed affordable public housing located at the existing Homestead Gardens campus.

HCD provided $2,000,000 from County Surtax funding and $2,000,000 from the HOME Program funds from Miami-Dade County. The project also includes Low-Income Housing Tax Credit equity sourced through National Equity Fund, a construction loan from Bank of America, and Freddie Mac permanent financing through Greystone.