South Florida Sun-Sentinel (Sunday)
Residential complex with 747 units is planned
DELRAY BEACH — Delray Beach’s Congress Avenue corridor has long been a sleepy area for new development, but that will soon change with construction close to breaking ground on a massive 43-acre, mixed-use project with 747 residential units.
Developers are hoping the project, Parks at Delray, will further spur more growth and turn the area just west of Interstate 95 and south of Linton Boulevard into a thriving new hub.
The residential units will comprise of 693 apartments scattered in numerous fourstory and five-story buildings and 54 townhomes. Additionally, Parks at Delray will include 40,000 square feet of commercial space and 12,000 square feet of new office space. The project will also incorporate 68,000 square feet of existing office space.
Construction will be on the first phase of residential units is slated to begin this fall.
The project, which is a joint venture between CDS International Holdings, Key International and 13th Floor Investments, is being built on the site of the former Office Depot headquarters. The lot, which is adjacent to Germantown Road and Congress Avenue, has remained vacant for 14 years since Office Depot moved its headquarters to Boca Raton.
Jeff Perlman, executive vice president of CDS International Holdings, said they chose the property because it was the largest available piece of land in Delray Beach.
Ninety-eight percent of the city is already built out, according to city documents.
While most of the city’s new development has been focused by its trendy downtown, he believes this area is ripe for development and that they could help jump-start growth in the area.
“It’s not an obvious location today, but it will be because we’re adding population,” said Perlman, who served as Delray Beach Mayor from 2003-07. “We’re pioneers and pioneers are always the ones that take that initial risk.
“We’re bullish on it because we think this is where the market is going. It’s a main road. It relates well to Boca Raton. It’s right
off I-95. There’s a Tri-Rail there. There should be some affordability on the site. It’s not going to be downtown rents. We think there is a market for it, certainly the housing.”
Of the 747 residential units on site, 10% will be allocated for workforce housing, 13th Floor Investments vice president Yair Wainberg said. He did not specify what the
income range would be for those apartments. The other 672 units will be listed at
market rate.
No commercial tenants have been announced yet for the project, but Perlman said they’re close to finalizing a deal for an anchor tenant.
Perlman said the hope is that the entire project will be completed by 2024 or 2025.
Parks at Delray is one of numerous projects in development along Congress Avenue.
In the adjacent parcel to the north, G&C Arbors Investors are pushing for a new eight-story building that would include 271 residential units, more than 1,000 square feet of commercial space and a seven-story parking garage at 1625 Congress Ave.
G&C Arbors Investors’ proposal for the eight-story building has already received pushback from the city due to the size of the building. The Planning and Zoning Board voted against the project earlier this year, but the developer plans on appealing the decision to the City Commission, which will make the final call.
Farther north on Congress at 2105 W. Atlantic Avenue, Aura Delray Beach is adding over luxury 276 apartments, which are expected to open this fall.