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San Clemente Villas Rising In Plant City

Tribune photo by GEORGE H. NEWMAN

The roof of St. Clement Catholic Church can be seen in the background of San Clemente Villas. The church sold the property for the villas to Catholic Charities, which received a grant of more than 9 million to finance the project.

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By GEORGE H. NEWMAN

gnewman@tampatrib.com

Published: December 17, 2008

PLANT CITY - A five-story, 68-unit apartment complex to provide affordable housing for the elderly is under construction near the entrance to St. Clement Catholic Church, 1104 N. Alexander St.

Each San Clemente Villas apartment of approximately 530 square feet will have one bedroom, bathroom, kitchen and living room, with each unit served by an individual air-conditioning system.

"The project is ahead of schedule and going very well," said Gerard Donnelly of Sierra Construction, Tampa, the project superintendent. "We came out of the ground on Aug. 8 and expect to turn the job over to the owners on Sept. 9."

The senior housing complex will be operated and maintained by Catholic Charities USA, a social services organization. U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development grants totaling about $9.5 million obtained by the Catholic Diocese of St. Petersburg and Catholic Charities will finance the project. The actual construction cost is estimated at $6.8 million.

The apartments will be leased to individuals who meet specific criteria.

"The tenants have to be at least 62 years old and have an annual income that is less than $19,000," said project manager Jim Conlin. "San Clemente is the third such complex we have built in the Tampa Bay area. The complex is designed to be tenant friendly, fully ADA approved and designed as a full-service community. They have proven to be very popular."

Conlin said there is a 1,144-square-foot multipurpose and serving area on the first floor near the main entrance and elevator. There is also an adjoining library and reading room. There will be a common laundry area on each floor.

Twelve of the 68 units are designed to accommodate the handicapped, including two for blind or deaf tenants.

During a power outage, a generator connected to the building's electrical service will provide power for an elevator, hallway lighting and, on the ground floor, air conditioning and electrical outlets in the multipurpose room and library.

The building backs up to Cronin Hall, the St. Clement social and meeting hall. The entrance and main parking lot face south, away from the church campus. The entrance overlooks a large wooded wetlands area to the south, east of Alexander Street.

The Rev. Tom Anastasia, pastor of St. Clement, formally blessed the ongoing project Nov. 21, asking that workers be protected from injury during construction.

"This is HUD low-income housing," Conlin said. "The entire building has been designed with safety and convenience of the tenants built in. The construction is top-notch and has been federally and locally approved in all phases."

The city originally approved zoning of about 30 acres adjacent to St. Clement to accommodate the villas. Much of that property is wetlands and considered undevelopable. The useable area accommodating the structure, parking and peripheral property takes up about 5 acres.

Original plans called for three stories, but the design was altered to reduce the building's footprint, officials said.

Conlin said Sierra Construction has built other subsidized housing complexes in Hillsborough County, including St. Lawrence, off Himes Avenue in Tampa, and San Lorenzo Terrace, off North MacDill Avenue.

San Clemente Villas joins Plant City Towers and The Living Center, both built through the efforts of First Baptist Church of Plant City, to provide affordable housing for senior citizens.

Reporter George H. Newman can be reached at (813) 865-4451.

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