Brett/Robinson Will Build Apartments on Canal Road for its workers

Thursday, November 10, 2005
By RYAN DEZEMBER Staff Reporter

ORANGE BEACH -- In a unanimous vote on Tuesday, the Planning Commission approved real estate conglomerate Brett/Robinson's plans to build three Canal Road apartment buildings to house its employees.
Rapidly rising housing costs in south Baldwin County's beach communities have caused problems for many of the area's tourism industry employers because those who fill the jobs at the core of the service economy can't afford to live locally.
Brett/Robinson, a local company well known for its Phoenix condominiums, has decided to offer its own housing to employees, particularly temporary laborers who bolster the firm's work force dur"We're having trouble getting people to come to this area to work for us," Newman told the Planning Commission. "The housing is not available and we're trying to provide that."
The firm will build the first of three two-story, 5,500-square-foot planned buildings this winter on a Canal Road tract that already holds the firm's laundry facility, Newman said.
According to plans, each of the buildings will hold eight three-bedroom, two-bathroom apartments. The buildings will be west of the laundry building and the first is to be built at the southern end of the property, Newman said.
Earlier in Tuesday's meeting, the Planning Commission unanimously approved the joining of two lots Brett/Robinson owned there. Since the property was already zoned for commercial uses, which allows apartments, no rezoning was required and the Planning Commission's approval of a site plan was all Brett/Robinson needs to begin construction.
Newman said that he's already applied for permits to lay the foundation of the first building and will begin the six-month construction period immediately in hopes that the apartments are ready to host workers in the summer.
The apartments will be geared toward young, single workers and each building will be able house up to 48 employees by putting two in each bedroom, Newman said.
"The market we have now that we're pulling from often is single individuals, not families," Newman said. "So rather than letting one person have a three-bedroom unit, we're looking for housing that would accommodate them short-term." ing the tourist season, said Harris Newman, senior project manager for Brett/Robinson.
Last year, Brett/Robinson hired about 100 people from various countries overseas for six months apiece and the Canal Road apartments would suit such temporary, often student, workers, Newman said.
Once the first building is open, the firm will decide whether to construct the other two, Newman said.
The company's long-range plans, he said, "would incorporate some additional parking around this building and we'll actually have shuttle buses that come into this house and pick up employees and carry them to differ ent locations.
"They also can work at the (laundry) facilities here."
City officials said they were happy to see such a proposal.
"What they're doing is to provide housing on site for their employees and naturally that's going to cut down on the amount of traffic if the employees live in the area," said Jim Lawson, director of Community Development. "We would like to compliment them on making this step."
Mayor Steve Russo, who did not attend the meeting but said he was familiar with Brett/Robinson's plan, said he welcomed the private sector's attempt to help solve the work force housing dilemma. City leaders have had discussions in the last year about the scarcity of housing that relatively well-paid municipal employees were able to afford.
"I would like to see some of these large employers take the initiative to help with their employee housing needs," Russo said in an interview Wednesday.
The mayor added that land costs in Orange Beach may prevent others from following Brett/Robinson's lead. Brett/Robinson, he said, was most likely able to afford such a project because it already owned the land and had a branch of its business operating there: "It probably makes more fiscal sense for them."
In Foley, Huntsville-based developers Randy Lewis and Elizabeth Hall are constructing Lewiston Hall on a Keller Road tract, which would serve a purpose similar to the Brett/Robinson apartments, although it will be open to employees of companies that contract with the builders.
Most of the planned 300 units planned to open by summer will be a cross between a college dormitory and an efficiency apartment with a bedroom and bathroom in each, but shared dining, laundry and fitness rooms, according to the developers. Other features such as a cafeteria and day care are planned as well.