Stellar JV Capitalizes BTR Adaptive Reuse Near Cape Canaveral
The Space Coast community will include 201 units.
Stellar Communities has secured LP equity from Lenox West Capital and $47 million in debt from two regional banks for the construction of Stellar Townhomes at Space Coast, a 201-unit BTR project rising on the site of a former airport in Rockledge, Fla. JLL Capital Markets arranged the equity and debt placement.
The partners broke ground on the project earlier this month, according to BTR List. The nearly 22-acre site used to serve as an airport until operations ceased in 2015 due to pilot rule violations. Stellar acquired the land last year for $10.7 million. Back then, the project was valued at $72 million.
BTR was not the developer’s first choice for the site, but had to change its plans. The initial three-story, 318-unit multifamily proposal was scrapped on account of public concerns, according to a December 2025 meeting of the Rockledge Board of Adjustment.
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Interstate 95 and U.S. Route 1 are less than 2 miles the site, which is located at 3795 Flypark Drive. Cape Canaveral is 16 miles away, while downtown Orlando is roughly 54 miles northwest. Space Coast employers include NASA, SpaceX, Lockheed Martin and Blue Origin, among others.
Along the same coast, Stellar Communities is developing another property, dubbed Havens at Palm Bay Reserve. Construction kicked off in October 2025, one year after Techo Funding had issued a $52.7 million construction loan, Yardi Matrix data shows.
JLL Managing Director Max La Cava, together with Director Pier Barinci and Associate Alex Riva, represented Stellar Communities in the equity and debt placement negotiations involving Stellar Townhomes at Space Coast.
Financing BTR post 21st Century ROAD to Housing
In its final iteration, the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act recognized the BTR model as distinct from scatter-site SFR at a federal level, sheltering it from the investment restrictions. The legislation also removed the previous seven-year obligate exit window for BTR projects.
Financial institutions prepared for a potential development wave following the uncertain period that characterized the first half of 2026. In June, IZO Capital debuted a $120 million fund to originate senior construction loans for projects throughout the nation, targeting BTR in addition to traditional multifamily, student housing and senior development.
