TAMPA, Fla. \u2014 Just a few blocks from Tampa\u2019s high-profile Gasworx redevelopment, another transformation is taking shape along the Nebraska Avenue corridor.<\/p>\n
Urban ReWorx is leading a neighborhood revitalization effort focused on expanding affordable housing, increasing homeownership opportunities and helping longtime residents remain in the community as redevelopment accelerates.<\/p>\n
For longtime resident Djala Peck, the changes are welcome.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just hope and am looking for improvement for everybody,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
But Peck, a single mother of three, said rising costs continue to make it difficult for working families.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is tough. It\u2019s not easy,\u201d she said. \u201cI have three boys, (ages) 17, 14 and seven.\u201d<\/p>\n
Urban ReWorx co-founder Thad Bereday said redevelopment has brought increased demand to the area.<\/p>\n
\u201cWith new residents moving to our community and new developments occurring, there has definitely been upward price pressure,\u201d Bereday said.<\/p>\n
Bereday said the organization\u2019s goal is to revitalize neighborhoods without leaving behind the people who have lived there for decades.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just believe that neglected communities should not be forgotten and deserve the same type of development investment that we\u2019re seeing in other parts of Tampa,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Urban ReWorx\u2019s latest project is The Vicente, a 20-unit mixed-use affordable housing development planned for 2914 North Nebraska Avenue. in the heart of V.M. Ybor.<\/p>\n
The development will include ground-floor retail space and apartments for households earning up to 80% of the area median income. The project is supported by more than $4.25 million in funding from the city of Tampa.<\/p>\n
\u201cNothing has really happened in the avenue for the last 60 plus years,\u201d said Miguel Gonzalez, Urban ReWorx\u2019s director of operations. \u201cSo I\u2019m delighted to be a part of this catalyst breakthrough for Nebraska.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gonzalez, a Ybor City native, said Urban ReWorx\u2019s work extends beyond apartment construction. Its portfolio also includes newly built bungalow-style single-family homes designed to blend into the neighborhood\u2019s historic character.<\/p>\n
The organization also helped establish the Nebraska Avenue Business Association to give local businesses a voice as redevelopment continues.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs the grandson and son of immigrants who started here, now I am the grandfather and father of the next fourth and fifth generation,\u201d Gonzalez said. \u201cSo what more can we say? What more can we do than to leave it better than when it was given to us?\u201d<\/p>\n
For Peck, the investment represents hope that longtime residents can remain part of the neighborhood despite the challenges of today\u2019s economy.<\/p>\n
\u201cJust basic essentials. All that adds up and I hope for a change one day,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Until that day comes, Peck said she appreciates Urban ReWorx\u2019s approach to creating stable, long-term housing opportunities instead of short-term solutions.<\/p>\n
Urban ReWorx plans to hold a groundbreaking ceremony for The Vicente on Sept. 2.<\/p>\n
Organization leaders say they hope the project will help spur continued investment along the Nebraska Avenue corridor while preserving affordability for current and future residents.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"TAMPA, Fla. \u2014 Just a few blocks from Tampa\u2019s high-profile Gasworx redevelopment, another transformation is taking shape along…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":361161,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[1571,21948,16022,27812,2031,558,2375,276,1644,115,135,137,136,14104,835],"class_list":["post-361160","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tampa","tag-affordable-housing","tag-app-affordable-housing","tag-app-housing","tag-app-latest-housing-stories","tag-app-local-business","tag-business","tag-fadia-patterson","tag-hillsborough-county","tag-housing","tag-news","tag-tampa","tag-tampa-headlines","tag-tampa-news","tag-topic-latest-local-business-stories","tag-vod"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/361160","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=361160"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/361160\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/361161"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=361160"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=361160"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=361160"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}