New apartments in West Palm Beach's hip Warehouse District add to allure of industrial area

The trendy Warehouse District southwest of downtown West Palm Beach has two new apartment buildings in the works that aim to elevate design in the evolving community first platted in the early 1900s.

City commissioners on April 1 unanimously approved the project, which will have 245 units including 61 dedicated to workforce housing. The two buildings straddle Alpha Street; one will be eight stories and the other four.

Building the project will be West Palm Beach-based Amato Millan Development, led by Alex Millan and former dragster racing champion and North Palm Beach resident Joe Amato. The two unnamed apartment buildings are an extension of the nearby 51-unit Mercer Park Apartments, which the company finished in 2022.

“With the first project, we saw people who wanted to embrace the warehouse district and be close to downtown,” Millan said. “There’s a different aesthetic with Grandview Market, and all the small businesses popping up in the neighborhood.”

Grandview Public Market opened in 2018 on the west side of Clare Avenue as part of a collection of several industrial buildings that were transformed into a bustling hub of restaurants and shops, including Steam Horse Brewing, the Steel Tie Spirits distillery and the Gypsy Life Surf Shop.

It was followed in 2021 by the luxury apartment complex The Point at District Flats, and innovative spaces, such as Pumphouse Pouratorium, a cafe and coffee hub north of Grandview on Clare Avenue.

Millan said building designer Claren Architecture of Boca Raton tapped into contemporary elements as well as an “industrial chic” aesthetic in its plans for the two new apartment buildings, including perforated metal balconies and brick and concrete finishes. Art will be integrated into the design with murals and sculptures.

There also will be pools, pickleball and tennis courts, co-working spaces, a cafe and a public park that will be maintained by the developer.

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“We wanted to set a new standard for what’s expected, not just for the neighborhood but in the city,” Millan said.

The units will be one- and two-bedroom with between 700 and 1,300 square feet.

Rent on regularly priced units hasn't been decided yet. For people making 100% of the area median income, which is $75,000 for one person and $85,700 for two people, the discounted workforce housing apartments are estimated to cost between $2,008 to $2,410 a month. These estimates could change depending on when the apartments are ready, which may not be for another three years.

In general, housing experts suggest that rent is considered affordable if it takes up no more than 30% of a household’s income. The workforce housing element is set aside for 20 years.

Millan and his partner began buying properties in the warehouse district in 2018. The 3.84 acres assembled for the two new buildings include 18 parcels, some of which have homes that will be razed before the project breaks ground early next year.

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During the April 1 presentation to city commissioners, project representatives said they had about 50 letters of support for the apartments, and two residents spoke in favor of it at the meeting.

Alpha Street resident Luis Morillo said he is happy with the site plan and welcomes street improvements the project has promised, including elements to slow speeding drivers.

A speed table and raised crosswalk will be built on Alpha Street. On-street parking also will be added, which a traffic engineer said naturally causes people to slow down.

“The developers have a track record of doing what they say they are going to do,” said nearby property owner Jeremy Schmitt at the April 1 meeting. “That includes their thoughtful design and infrastructure improvements in the neighborhood.”

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Kimberly Miller is a journalist for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA Today Network of Florida. She covers real estate and how growth affects South Florida's environment. Subscribe to The Dirt for a weekly real estate roundup. If you have news tips, please send them to kmiller@pbpost.com. Help support our local journalism; subscribe today.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: West Palm Beach warehouse district to get two new apartment buildings