A Washington, D.C.-based developer is gearing up to restart a long-stalled affordable housing complex on Central Avenue that would bring 204 apartments to west St. Petersburg, most reserved for lower-income residents. The project, now branded Sixty90, is planned for a cleared three-acre site at 6090 Central Avenue and is slated to feature ground-floor retail and a suite of market-level amenities. With local officials lining up behind it and public dollars on the table, the deal is positioned to move into construction later this year.
County And City Back The Financing
Pinellas County commissioners have recommended $6.71 million in Penny for Pinellas construction funding for Sixty90, and the City of St. Petersburg is expected to match that figure as part of a roughly $67.2 million development budget. According to Pinellas County, the capital stack will also rely on sponsor equity and construction loans, and a land-use restriction agreement is set to preserve affordability for at least 30 years. County staff still need to complete loan underwriting and other due diligence before any public money is released.
New Developer Plans To Keep The Design
Washington, D.C.-based Gravel Road Partners is under contract to acquire the site from local groups DDA Development and Backstreets Capital and says hanging on to most of the existing design should help speed the actual build. As founding partner Tyler Herbert told St. Pete Catalyst, "We’re workforce developers, but our North Star really is going to be 80% units." Gravel Road's press materials describe the company as focused on public-private partnerships that build and preserve workforce housing in markets where supply is tight.
How The Project Fell Behind
DDA and Backstreets assembled the parcel in December 2020, paying about $5.6 million for the property. The city signed off on plans for a four-story community in 2021, but escalating construction costs pushed the project off track. The original development team ultimately returned earlier Penny for Pinellas funding and put the fully entitled site up for sale. Gravel Road began talking about a potential takeover in mid-2025, according to reporting by St. Pete Rising, a backstory that helps explain why county and city leaders are zeroed in on a partner they believe can actually get the job done.
Design And Who It Will Serve
The current four-story blueprint calls for about 5,000 square feet of retail space along Central Avenue, plus a clubhouse, pool, fitness center, pet run and co-working space. Out of the 204 planned apartments, 122 are set aside for households earning at or below 80% of the area median income. Per Pinellas County, the project would also include 271 vehicle parking spaces and 218 bicycle spaces, with the average unit size coming in around 1,022 square feet. City and county officials say the Multifamily Property Tax Exemption, together with the Penny for Pinellas funding, is a crucial piece of keeping rents locked in at restricted levels for decades.
What’s Next
Gravel Road says it started working with the original team in 2025 and expects to move toward construction if underwriting and final negotiations stay on schedule. County documents list loan underwriting and financial analysis as the immediate next steps, and the developer has told local outlets it is eyeing a groundbreaking this summer. The latest change in the development lineup was covered in a July 16 story by the Tampa Bay Business Journal.
