TAMPA, Fla. — Three Tampa natives who met as teenagers at Tampa Bay Tech are seeing their dream of giving back to their community take shape — in the form of new affordable housing in Ybor City.
What You Need To Know
Dontavious Pittman, Kevin Johnson, and Ponce McNeal — founders of Pittman Design Group — celebrated a major milestone Monday as the city officially cut the ribbon on their first multifamily development
The group was awarded a $3 million grant to fund construction of a 10-unit apartment complex at the corner of Columbus Drive and 21st Street
The project is designed exclusively for households earning 80% or less of the area’s median income
City leaders say the project marks progress in closing the gap for family-sized affordable units in Tampa
Dontavious Pittman, Kevin Johnson, and Ponce McNeal, founders of Pittman Design Group, celebrated a major milestone Monday as the city officially cut the ribbon on their first multifamily development.
The group was awarded a $3 million grant through the State Housing Initiatives Partnership (SHIP) program to fund construction of a 10-unit apartment complex at the corner of Columbus Drive and 21st Street.
The project is designed exclusively for households earning 80% or less of the area’s median income (AMI) — that’s roughly $83,000 a year for a family of four. Six of the units will be set aside for families earning around $52,000 or less, or 50% AMI.
Dontavious Pittman (left) and Kevin Johnson (right).
Standing just five miles from where the trio first became friends, the site holds deep personal meaning for the developers.
“It’s very monumental for us,” said Dontavious Pittman. “We have dreams of developing affordable housing, but it’s not always feasible. For the city to take a chance on us and assist us with making our dreams come true — and helping other families — is a great opportunity.”
For Kevin Johnson, the project also represents a bridge between two of Tampa’s most historic neighborhoods: East Tampa and Ybor City.
“Columbus Drive separates East Tampa on the north side from Ybor. East Tampa is historically Black neighborhoods, Ybor is historically Cuban,” said Johnson. “[General] Antonio Maceo was Afro-Cuban, we just felt like it was a good representation for this project.”
The complex features two and three bedroom units designed with families in mind, something city officials say is sorely needed.
City leaders say the project marks progress in closing the gap for family-sized affordable units in Tampa.
“If you follow affordable housing in the city of Tampa, you’ll find that we’ve had a plethora now of smaller units — the studios, the ones, and a smattering of twos,” said District 1 Councilman Alan Clendenin. “What we’ve really had a deficit in is building these units for families. And that’s the most exciting part of this for me.”
Mayor Jane Castor praised the developers’ commitment and the city’s partnership with them.
“On the one hand, incomes are going up in our city, which we can all celebrate,” Castor said. “On the other hand, housing is getting so expensive that we’re having people priced out of our city, and we can’t do that. So we’ve been focused on building affordable housing.”
“They [Pittman Design Group] took a chance on us and we took a chance on them — and we provided them with $3 million to build these affordable units that we see behind us now.”
Representation in Development
As some of the few Black developers in Tampa, the Pittman Design Group partners say their journey is also about representation and visibility.
“It means a lot,” Johnson said. “We hope that we can be a representation for other people — just showing that it’s possible for people who look like us.”
Their long-term goal is to continue redeveloping the corridor, which they call “the gateway to East Tampa.”
“We plan to continue to work in this area and just transform this entire node,” Johnson added.
The Ybor City project stands as both a housing solution and a homecoming — a full-circle moment for three friends who turned their shared vision into a foundation for others.
“We just want to keep Tampa natives local,” Pittman said.