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Eight buildings and 57 of the 113 units at the Eagle Landing apartments have been completely renovated, while another seven are in various stages of renovation, a Suffolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority official said.

Updating the authority’s board of commissioners during its Jan. 26 virtual meeting, SRHA Community Development Director Tammy Jackson, illustrating her presentation with photos of the work being done, said that Building 8’s seven units and Building 9’s 10 units are the latest to be finished and occupied. Only one structure — Building 11 — has yet to see any work performed.
Jackson also said abatement and demolition work on the 10 units of Building 10 is nearly finished, with abatement underway, and there’s new cabinetry being installed. Abatement work on Building 17’s seven units is underway.

Renovations to Building 3 are in progress, with interior demolition and abatement finished and framing complete. At Building 1’s six units, interior demolition and abatement have been finished, while concrete floors have been cut and underground plumbing and interior framing are complete. Insulation has also been installed and drywall is going up at Building 1.

People who had been living at Eagle Landing — formerly known as Cypress Manor — were shifted into other units, since the work has been done in phases.

Across the street at White Marsh Pointe’s 93 units, the building pads have been completed and the concrete slabs have been poured, Jackson said, and framing for the units has started to go up. The community building has been framed, and new roads and driveways have been cut in at about 60% and are being prepared for completion. Sanitary sewers have also been installed, while water lines and fire service are also nearly complete.

“They’re working on schedule to complete the units,” Jackson said.

She showed photos indicating water retention issues for the developers to deal with at White Marsh Pointe. That section had to undergo an asbestos remediation process before those buildings, roads and underground utilities were demolished.

All of the units at both White Marsh Pointe and Eagle Landing will be converted to Section 8 project-based voucher assistance housing. The total cost of the project is estimated at $46.3 million, financed by a mix of tax credits, a loan from SRHA, $275,000 from the city and $1 million in grants from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta. The Department of Housing and Urban Development endorsed the Federal Housing Administration-insured $23.1 million mortgage on the project.

Vista Capital Management, experienced with managing low-income tax credit community properties, is providing property management through 2024, when the housing authority will resume managing them. Both properties will be owned by Eagle Landing Apartments LP based on a long-term ground lease with the housing authority, with the housing authority as the 51% general manager and TCG Development Advisor as managing general partner.

Board positions unchanged

Quinton Franklin will continue as the board’s chairman in a 6-0 vote — with Franklin abstaining and Ben Fitzgerald and Clarence Ash absent — and Clementine Cone will continue as its vice-chairwoman following a 7-0 vote during the meeting.