For many older adults in Miami-Dade County, the challenge of aging in place has become increasingly difficult as housing costs continue to outpace fixed incomes.
County officials, housing developers and community leaders gathered on June 4 to celebrate the opening of Phase II of Quail Roost Station, a new affordable housing development dedicated to seniors along the South Dade TransitWay corridor.
Located at 18555 Homestead Ave., adjacent to the Eureka Dr. station of the new Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor, the development is part of a six-phase redevelopment effort designed to bring affordable housing and transit access together in one location.
"Independence is one of the core principles of the American experience," Miami-Dade County Vice Chairman and District 9 Commissioner Kionne McGhee told The Miami Times following the ceremony. "For us to be able to provide this type of housing — quality housing — for our seniors who have paid so much for us to be here today is, in my humble opinion, the greatest thing we could have done and the greatest thing we are doing."
Aging with dignity
The new building includes 36 studios, 72 one-bedroom apartments and 16 two-bedroom units reserved for residents 55 and older. Twenty apartments are designated for households earning 30% or less of the Area Median Income, 44 units are for residents earning 60% or below, and 60 are for those earning 70% or below. Rents range from $579 to $1,847.
The property also features a community room, business center, fitness center and on-site laundry facilities.
Quail Roost Station II arrives as older adults face mounting housing costs across Miami-Dade County. According to the United Way ALICE Report, the annual "survival budget" for a single senior in Miami-Dade is approximately $47,200, while a two-person senior household needs nearly $70,000 annually to cover basic necessities, including housing and healthcare costs.
However, many seniors live on a fixed income.
In Miami-Dade, nearly 470,000 county residents are over age 65, with another 350,000 between ages 55 and 64. County data shows the average annual income for seniors receiving housing assistance is approximately $14,691. At the same time, median rents across Miami-Dade have climbed to around $2,100 per month.
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The result is a widening affordability gap. An estimated 42% of senior households in Miami-Dade are classified as ALICE — Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed — meaning they earn above the federal poverty line but still struggle to afford basic needs. Another 23% live in poverty.
McGhee said developments like Quail Roost are helping to address the challenges.
"Projects like this provide seniors with a greater quality of life," he said. "Aging with dignity is something that the Bible speaks about. It's just us actually implementing those principles found within our faith — that those who have come before us, it is our job to ensure that they have a quality of life.”
McGhee said developments like Quail Roost Station send an important message to older residents in the county.
"The message that this project sends is that the county is still on the side of the seniors," he said. "We're going to do whatever we can do as it relates to creating strategic partnerships, investing money into projects in order to help reduce the rising cost that's impacting quality of life."
Miami-Dade County has thousands of affordable housing units for seniors. In South Dade, some of those affordable housing developments include Sol Vista Apartments, Tucker Tower, Caribbean Village, Ludlam Trail Residences and Naranja Grand.
Transit-oriented
While affordability remains the project's primary focus, county officials emphasized location as being of equal importance. The development sits directly along the South Dade TransitWay corridor.
Kenneth Naylor, president of development for Atlantic Pacific Companies, said transit access can be transformative for older adults.
"Having seniors able to easily access a world-class transit system is life-changing," Naylor said during the ceremony. "We're giving people time back. We're giving people money back, and that's quality of life."
Stacy Miller, director of Miami-Dade's Department of Transportation and Public Works (DTPW), said proximity to transportation helps seniors remain connected and independent.
"South Dade TransitWay is literally just steps away, helping residents stay connected to healthcare, shopping, recreation, community services and the people and places that matter most," Miller said. "For many seniors, having transportation nearby helps support their independence. It makes it easier for them to stay connected."
Miller noted that Miami-Dade has completed 15 transit-oriented developments that together have created more than 10,000 housing units countywide, with additional projects currently underway.
Notable examples include Atlantic Square in Overtown, Link at Douglas, Grove Central in Coconut Grove and Northside Transit Village. Meridian Point and Caribbean Village are located along the South Dade corridor.
Building the future
The development is part of Miami-Dade County's broader effort to concentrate housing near major transit corridors as available land becomes increasingly scarce.
Nathan Kogon, director of the county's Department of Housing and Community Development, said projects like Quail Roost Station reflect decades of planning decisions designed to accommodate population growth while preserving open space.
"Twenty-five or thirty years ago, this was low-density development," Kogon said. "The Board of County Commissioners made decisions on how we're going to grow over the next 20 to 25 years and where people are going to be housed."
With the Atlantic Ocean to the east and the Everglades to the west, Kogon said Miami-Dade has little room to expand outward, making these projects increasingly important.
Naylor also noted that work is already underway on future phases of the development.
“The dream that started this has become doing,” Naylor said during the ceremony. “A building like this doesn't just happen because one government agency says they want to make it happen. It doesn't happen because one developer has an idea. It happens because of a whole group.”
The third phase of Quail Roost Station is already under construction and will add 106 apartments for seniors when completed.
