ORLANDO, Fla. — Universal Orlando is partnering with a housing group to address the problem impacting thousands of renters in our area.
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The plan is to build affordable places to live at Trade Show Road and Destination Parkway, near where Universal is building its newest theme park, Epic Universe.
The Altamonte Springs-based housing group Wendover will help bring 1,000 new apartments to Orlando.
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Wendover CEO Jonathon Wolf said he hopes it could be a pathway to address the affordable housing crisis in Orlando.
“We’ve got over a 100 thousand people working in this corridor,” he said. “Some are commuting over two hours a day because of the affordability issue. I said, we have to bring a few other elements in.”
The plan is to also add 16,000 square feet of retail space which would include free preschool for people living there, along with a community center, classrooms and workout centers.
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The theme park’s website said it wanted to get involved because it believes affordable housing is a human right.
Rent will range from $400 to just under $2,000.
The developers are still in the permitting process of the project. While there’s still a ways to go before this could become a reality, the group hopes to break ground by the end of the year.
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