On Tuesday, local leaders stood alongside development and management company representatives to break ground of The Lodges on Lincoln project.

“We don’t get this kind of opportunity every day,” said Sheryl Smedley, Executive Director of the Selma-Dallas County Chamber of Commerce.

The project is a $9.5 million boon for the city and will employee mostly local contractors and other companies to do the heavy lifting.

“I would say we’re under construction,” said Paula Rhodes, President of INVICTUS Development which is overseeing the project.

Aside from breaking ground, the nine-acre site of the new facility is already cleared and developers are gearing up for infrastructure installation soon. The first building is slated to be completed by September 2019.

“Depending on the weather, we may have the whole thing done by then,” Rhodes said.

According to Rhodes, The Lodges will be a 56-unit family development filled with two and three bedroom apartments. The space is specifically designed for low-income families. There will be four residential buildings on the site and an additional “community” building, which will house the leasing office, exercise and laundry equipment.

Space in the new apartment complex will be reserved for tenants whose income does not exceed 60 percent of Selma’s median income. Further, 20 percent of the units will be reserved for tenants whose income doesn’t exceed 50 percent of the area’s median income.

According to Data USA, the median income in Selma is $23,283. By this margin, people making $13,969 or less will be eligible for space reserved for those making 60 percent of the median income and people making $11,641 or less will be eligible for space reserved for those making 50 percent of the median income.

Additionally, a handful of spaces will be reserved for disabled tenants or those transitioning out of homelessness. According to Rhodes, the Cahaba Center for Mental Health will be assisting in finding tenants for those units.

“We’re very excited to finally get started on this project,” Rhodes said. “We look forward to a long partnership with the City of Selma.”