Ground broken for Porto Vista apartments
The need for affordable housing in Cape Coral is among the biggest problems the city faces. However, on Tuesday, ground was broken on a project that will help in that deficit.
A ceremonial groundbreaking was held at the Apartments at the Isles of Porto Vista, which is located near the North Fort Myers community line just off Del Prado Boulevard, North. The project has already gotten started, and an aggressive timeframe should result in the first building of 15 units being completed by May, and all eight buildings being completed by the end of next year.
The apartment complex will have one-, two- and two-bedroom convertible apartments for rent. About 228 units will have been built when finished, and are designed to have a price point that’s at current market rates, said Bernie Offenberg, president of Harbor Development and Genesis Properties, the company building the apartments.
The one-bedroom units will be 950 square feet, the two-bedrooms will be 1,100 square feet and the convertibles will be around 1,200 square feet.
“We expect them to be a little lower than the market is currently getting, with one-bedroom apartments getting around $1,200 to $1,300 per month, with the convertibles going for around $1,500,” Offenberg said.
The city of Cape Coral has identified a serious housing shortage in the city, though it also extends to Lee County and pretty much a good part of the country.
“We are undergoing a severe shortage of fairly priced market rate housing for the demand in the market, that is seeking more product than it is able to deliver,” Offenberg said.
Offenberg added the market isn’t too good for condos, which the Isles of Porto Vista has plenty of, having been built before the downturn. But the market is strong for apartments, which was why the company was decided to build apartments there to meet the demand.
Mike Aiello, superintendent for the project, said things are on schedule and should remain so for the remainder of the project. Multiple trades and operations will be coming in, with as many as 200 working on the project at times.
“You can’t see a whole lot, but there are five buildings with foundations and pipe in the ground and we’re ready to go vertical,” Aiello said. “We’re going to have 40 or so masons coming in, so that will be a huge crew. We’re very confident we’ll make our schedule.”