‘Blueprint’ affordable housing development completed in St. Pete 

A community-focused housing developer built a unique South St. Petersburg project in a year, despite delays caused by back-to-back hurricanes, while forging new relationships with local stakeholders. 

The Bayou Court Apartments now provides 60 affordable homes – 12 for those earning 50% or less of the area median income – across the street from Lakewood Elementary School. It also offers hope for some teachers and parents who have watched it rapidly take shape. 

Development firm Gravel Road Partners prioritizes applications from public schools and local government employees. Founding partner Tyler Herbert noted that many teachers and staff must move “further and further away from where they’re showing up every day to teach our children” due to the ongoing discrepancy between housing costs and wages. 

“We’ve had the unique pleasure to get to know that special school, both pre-construction and during this project,” Herbert said at a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday. “If this could be a blueprint for other developers, then we’ve done our job.” 

Lakewood Elementary School sits directly across the street from the Bayou Court Apartments.

Gravel Road Partners (GRP) broke ground at 4201 6th St. S. in April 2024. Mayor Ken Welch noted the firm previously planned to build market-rate apartments at the site. 

Instead, GRP will dedicate nine units to households earning up to 80% of the area median income (AMI), with 12 capped at just 50%. That equates to $46,950 for a family of three. 

The remaining 39 units are for those earning between 100% and 120% of the AMI. Welch said Bayou Court is for “the folks who make our city run.” 

St. Petersburg contributed $2.74 million to the $17 million project. Pinellas County commissioners allocated $2.8 million. 

“I want to thank Gravel Road Partners for not only focusing on making the most money, because they could have done that,” Welch said. “Bayou Courts is special. It’s special because it shows how building public-private partnerships can work.” 

He added that the importance of those relationships has increased, as local leaders face federal funding uncertainty. Welch said the city and county will continue to set a national standard for creating housing opportunities. 

Commission Chair Brian Scott credited GRP for completing an “absolutely beautiful” project in “record time” amid an unprecedented hurricane season. Herbert said that was “largely due to the incredible efforts” of Park & Eleazer Construction.

The Clearwater-based general contractor encountered another unexpected hurdle – a federally protected bald eagle nest. After the event, project superintendent Mike Besseo said the discovery necessitated a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency permit. 

An juvenile bald eagle kept a close eye on the crowd at Wednesday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony.

Park & Eleazer moved a construction entrance and built a bright-orange fence around the tree. Besseo said they protected the still-active nest “at all costs.” Environmental officials frequently visited the site to ensure compliance. 

While the project is GRP’s first in the area, it will not be its last. Scott noted the firm is rehabilitating a 258-unit apartment complex in Largo and ensuring it remains affordable rather than a market-rate redevelopment. 

The county dedicated $12.16 million in Penny for Pinellas tax funding to the Oasis at Bayside’s rebirth. However, Scott said affordable housing “doesn’t just happen because local governments are offering financial help.” 

“It takes everybody taking on a portion of the risk, which is what you see here,” he continued. “When local governments work hand-in-hand with good business partners, everybody wins.” 

Students and faculty have already realized the project’s benefits. GRP has quietly supported Lakewood Elementary and recently sponsored a trip for students to explore Bethune-Cookman University, a historically Black college in Daytona Beach. 

Tyler Herbert, founding partner at Gravel Road Partners, said his Washington D.C.-based firm is “rooted in Florida.”

After the crowd had dissipated, Herbert told the Catalyst that his business is also personal. He said the firm equally values community and investor relationships. “We don’t think those have to be mutually exclusive.” 

Herbert said Lakewood principal Renee Nellenbach and her team have done “incredible things” with the school and its children. “Above and beyond – like way beyond,” he said. 

“When we find groups like that who are serving the community and trying to truly effectuate change, we try to figure out how to inject our resources to help them get to the next level,” Herbert added. “How else can we be viewed as a true project partner in these communities so that we’re not just a developer that is building stuff?” 

GRP has leased 21 of Bayou Court’s 60 apartments. Three of the first residents work for local governments and four work for Pinellas County Schools.