Developer Neighborlee Living, led by Kurt Jetta, has received approval from Palm Beach County to build a four-story, 38-unit affordable apartment project featuring micro-units as small as 240 square feet. The project, named Neighborlee Living Westgate, was approved during a zoning hearing on Thursday and will be located at 2818 Westgate Avenue in unincorporated Palm Beach County near West Palm Beach. The site is within an area designated for growth by the Westgate Community Redevelopment Agency.
Jetta said the development is aimed at recent college graduates. Micro-units are becoming more common across the country as cities look for ways to address housing affordability challenges. In Miami’s Allapattah neighborhood, a proposed 400-unit development will include 40 micro-units. According to industry reports, micro-units make up a significant portion of planned apartments in some cities.
Neighborlee Living Westgate will consist of 26 micro-units at 240 square feet each, 10 studios at 360 square feet, and two one-bedroom units at 538 square feet. Most units are reserved for renters earning between 60 percent and 80 percent of the county’s area median income (AMI), which is $104,000 as of 2024.
According to Neighborlee’s website, rents will be $1,200 per month for micro-units, $1,600 for studios, and $2,000 for one-bedrooms. Studios and one-bedroom units will also include a $250 monthly voucher toward childcare costs.
While thousands of new residential units are under development in West Palm Beach, most cater to higher-income tenants. For example, Related Ross’ Laurel apartment tower opened last year with one-bedroom rents starting at $3,500.
“I’ve always been wired to pay attention to the people making $50,000 and below,” Jetta said. “I just felt like they were underserved and misunderstood.”
Jetta noted that while revenue per square foot is higher in micro-units compared to traditional apartments, developing affordable projects remains financially challenging due to construction costs.
“We were taken aback by the costs [of construction],” he said.
This marks Jetta’s first development in Palm Beach County. He commented on his experience with local regulations following project approval.
“We never ran into some cumbersome regulation,” he said. “Everybody’s well-meaning, everybody’s doing their job, but still, you don’t get the affordable housing output people want to see.”
