South Side Columbus Breaks Ground on 150-Unit Affordable Apartments

The NRP Group broke ground August 25, 2026 on Stone Ridge at High Street, a 150-unit affordable apartment community at 45 West Barthman Avenue on Columbus's South Side. Huntington Bank and Deutsche Bank are financing the project alongside the city and the Ohio Housing Finance Agency, with completion expected in April 2028.

What Broke Ground on Barthman Avenue

Stone Ridge at High Street will consist of two five-story buildings on a 4.5-acre site, holding a mix of one-, two-, three-, and four-bedroom apartments, according to The NRP Group's groundbreaking announcement, distributed via PR Newswire. The development will include a clubhouse with a multipurpose community room and kitchen, plus landscaped courtyards and a playground, the announcement said.

The site sat empty for years before this groundbreaking. "For years, this property sat vacant, despite its proximity to downtown Columbus and some of the city's strongest employment centers," said Aaron Pechota, executive vice president of development at The NRP Group, in the announcement.

Who the Apartments Are For

The units will be reserved for working professionals and families earning up to 60% of the area median income, the release said, a tier aimed at renters priced out of market-rate housing but above the income limits some deeper-subsidy programs serve. MultifamilyBiz.com's separate report on the groundbreaking confirmed the same address, unit count, and site size independently.

How the Deal Is Financed

Huntington Bank provided debt and equity financing, and Deutsche Bank is providing construction and permanent financing, with the City of Columbus and the Ohio Housing Finance Agency as public partners, according to the NRP Group announcement. Neither the release nor MultifamilyBiz.com's report disclosed a total project cost or the size of each financing piece.

Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther framed the project as a model for the city's affordable-housing push: "Public-private partnerships are essential to the success of the Columbus Housing Strategy, and Stone Ridge at High Street demonstrates what can be accomplished when city leaders, financial institutions and private developers work together with a shared vision."

Andrew Hugger of Huntington Bank added: "We are proud to support Stone Ridge at High Street and help bring high-quality, affordable housing to the Southside of Columbus, creating new opportunities for residents."

More South Side Housing in the Pipeline

Stone Ridge is one of several NRP Group projects along the South High Street corridor. According to a Columbus Underground report on city zoning and development records, a separate 245-unit NRP project called Dering Family Apartments near Fornof Road and South High Street has secured financing and neighborhood support and could break ground later this year, and a second NRP zoning application proposes roughly 200 more apartments on an 8-acre site nearby. CREN has not independently verified those two projects' records and is citing Columbus Underground's reporting on them.

What to Watch Next

Construction on Stone Ridge at High Street is underway with an expected completion date of April 2028, roughly 20 months out. The next public milestones to watch are a building permit progress update from the City of Columbus and any zoning commission action on the second, 200-unit NRP proposal nearby. For more on how the South Side is changing, see CREN's South Side area coverage.