Affordable housing community takes new name

A multi-family residential project has taken a new moniker.

Copa Flats, a 312-unit apartment community under construction at 17845 N. Porter Road, just north of Maricopa-Casa Grande Highway, will now be known as Copa House, according to a company spokesperson.

According to Stefanie Sokup, vice president and lease-up project manager for Real Estate Equities, developer of the community, the new name keeps the Maricopa project consistent with the company’s other projects.

“We have numerous developments in Minnesota with the ‘House’ brand and wanted to continue that in Arizona,” she wrote in an email. “It fits with our branding of affordable projects and our messaging of ‘Providing Housing.’”

The St. Paul, Minnesota-based developer’s $87.8 million project will be built in five phases, with the initial phase scheduled to be available April 1, 2023.

The community’s 1-, 2- and 3-bedroom units are classified as affordable housing and will be available to those earning 60% of the median income in Pinal County, or between $30,000 and $60,000 per year. Rents are expected to fall in the $950-$1,330 per month range.

Sokup said REE is looking to have a leasing office staffed and ready to take applications by about Nov. 15. (There are restrictions on how soon before opening a developer may start leasing units.) Those who want to join an interest list for the community can go here.

The company said it expects to have a full website – with floorplans, income limits, rents, square footages and amenities – online in about a month.

“Our target is people who live in this community who have seen the 20% spike in rent they’re paying in the Valley over the last year,” Eric Omdahl, a REE partner said at the project’s groundbreaking event. “There are a number of new employment uses coming to Maricopa as part of the growth of the community and we see this as a viable housing choice for people who don’t want to get priced out of the market with single-family homes, which are now exceeding $2,000 a month on a rental basis.

“Not everyone can afford to put money down and get financing for a loan, so this is a good opportunity to provide a rental housing choice.”

Copa House will be REE’s 10th affordable housing community since 2016. The developer, which specializes in multi-family apartment management and development, manages and/or owns a portfolio of more than 4,000 units throughout Indiana, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and now Arizona.