A public sector/private sector venture will provide 22 new "affordable housing" apartments to the Lawrence County landscape.

Ironton Lawrence County Community Action Organization director Ralph Kline said recently that the units, paired off as duplexes, will be built on land along Charley Creek Road near South Point behind the K-Mart Shopping Center.

Kline said construction should start by early fall, with some units available by early spring. The entire $1.25 million project is expected to be completed by the fall of next year.

Superior Construction of South Point is the contractor for the project.

Each apartment will have three bedrooms, one bath and a garage. Most of the apartments will have approximately 1,200 square feet of space.

"It's pretty much a typical three bedroom house, stacked one on top of the other," Kline said. "Each will have a private entrance and there will be some common space between the buildings. We are trying to have some amenities, such as nicer cabinets, nicer appliances."

Monthly rentals will be in the $340-500 range, Kline said.

Eleven apartment will be set aside for lower income residents, but there will be no rent subsidies of any kind. The other 11 will be priced at the market rate.

The project is being paid for partly through private financing and partly through a $550,000 loan from the Ohio Housing Finance Agency.

RLJ Management of Columbus will manage the complex.

"I think this is a community response to a need," Kline said. "We have a real need here for affordable housing. This is an example of how the public sector can assist in making it happen." Teresa Moore/The Ironton Tribune