Affordable mixed-use housing complex completes in South Los Angeles

A new 74-unit, mixed-use affordable housing development for families has recently completed at the southwest corner of Central Avenue and Jefferson Boulevard in Los Angeles.

Designed by KFA, The Florence Mills Apartments rises four stories and was designed with a zig-zag plan to create many angles offering views to the street and a sense of openness that celebrates the corner site. Named in honor of Florence Mills, a Black vaudeville singer, dancer, and actress, the project features two large murals of Mills on the outside of the building on prominent street-facing walls.

Florence Mills Apartments exterior

The project includes 13 one-bedroom units, 37 two-bedroom units, and 24 three-bedroom units. Every unit has a balcony and large windows. Amenities include community and common areas, underground parking, four laundry rooms, and secure access to the building. Additionally, the project features 5,000 sf of commercial retail space that fronts the corner plaza with roll up doors.

Florence Mills Exterior facade

Units will be restricted to households at the low-, very low-, and extremely low-income levels, with rents set between $507 and $1,171 per month.

The Florence Mills Apartments is expecting to achieve LEED Platinum certification.

Florence Mills Apartments mural

The Tampa Bay Rays Major League Baseball team announced that it has reached an agreement with St. Petersburg and Pinellas County on a $6.5 billion, 86-acre mixed-use development that will include a new 30,000-seat ballpark and an array of office, housing, hotel, retail, and restaurant space totaling 8 million sf.

Engineers | Sep 15, 2023

NIST investigation of Champlain Towers South collapse indicates no sinkhole

Investigators from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) say they have found no evidence of underground voids on the site of the Champlain Towers South collapse, according to a new NIST report. The team of investigators have studied the site’s subsurface conditions to determine if sinkholes or excessive settling of the pile foundations might have caused the collapse.

MFPRO+ Research | Sep 11, 2023

Conversions of multifamily dwellings to ‘mansions’ leading to dwindling affordable stock

Small multifamily homes have historically provided inexpensive housing for renters and buyers, but developers have converted many of them in recent decades into larger, single-family units. This has worsened the affordable housing crisis, say researchers.

Deciphering the Differences in Smart Lock Networks

Adaptive Reuse | Aug 31, 2023

New York City creates team to accelerate office-to-residential conversions

New York City has a new Office Conversion Accelerator Team that provides a single point of contact within city government to help speed adaptive reuse projects. Projects that create 50 or more housing units from office buildings are eligible for this new program.