Starway came into the public consciousness in 2021, when developer Ted Heilbron sought a rezoning for the old flea market on Carolina Beach Road. He also sought help from city, county, and state governments to fund the affordable housing project, promising rents affordable to people who work service jobs.
It’s a Low Income Housing Tax Credit property, and that LIHTC equity accounted for $30.7 million of the project's eventual $75 million budget. But it also got $9 million from the NC Office of Recovery and Resiliency, a $4.3 million loan from the city, and a $2.4 million loan from the county.
Now, they’re taking applications on the first 102 apartments, with 176 more to come this winter. 1-bedroom apartments will cost $1047 per month, including water and sewer. The complex has even more two and three-bedroom apartments, which will rent for under $1,300 and $1,500 per month, respectively.
That’s a bit higher than the original estimates in 2021, but that’s because the Area Median income in New Hanover County has gone up by 45% since then. Heilbron says they raised their rents by about 25%.
"Without rent increases this project wouldn’t have been feasible or would have required substantially more public funding ($10M+) to pencil," he said in an email to WHQR. "Unfortunately, affordable developers don’t get discounted construction costs, operating costs, or borrowing costs; we pay the same as our market rate peers. If a project doesn’t pencil the units are never built."
The complex is required to stay affordable at 60% of the Area Median Income for 30 years. Heilbron said that it was challenging to get Starway to pencil out, and would not have been possible without the efforts of the city and county. What was originally pegged as a $57 million project grew to a $75 million project, largely thanks to interest rates and rising operating costs.
According to the county's housing needs assessment, known as the Bowen Report, there was a gap of 1,772 units for those who make 51-60% of AMI in the county. That means the Starway project will make up 15.7% of the total housing gap at that level. According to 2023 Bowen update, the county's total housing gap is now 16,875 at all levels of income, accounting for both rentals and for-sale homes.
The Starway complex is accepting applications now, and welcomes those with Housing Choice Vouchers from Wilmington Housing Authority to apply, Heilbron said.
"We’re also working with Trillium’s “Transitions to Community Living” voucher initiative and with NC DHHS’s Targeting Program," he said.
