A development partnership wants to build 80 apartments intended to provide affordable housing in the Monkey Junction area, one of the partners said Friday.

Stephen Brock of Brock Ventures Inc. and KRP Investments LLC are seeking a higher-density conditional use zoning designation from New Hanover County for what would be a $10.8 million project on 6.9 acres at 4713 Carolina Beach Road, about a mile north of the Monkey Junction Wal-Mart.

The first step will be a community information meeting scheduled for 6 p.m. March 3 at Codington Elementary School, 4321 Carolina Beach Road, where the partnership will present the apartment complex - to be called Abbington Cove - to nearby residents and others interested in finding out more.

“The market is definitely there,” Brock said, explaining why the group chose that area. “There were many parcels that were either too big or too small, but that one was just the right size. New Hanover County, especially the greater Wilmington area, is very much built out and so it’s not like we have a great selection of parcels available. This one met all the criteria.”

Brock and his partners have the property, owned by members of the Lawson family, under contract.

The group is currently competing with other builders for federal tax credits in the amount of $7.6 million to fund the development, but they won’t know whether they will be granted the credits until August, Brock said. The credits are necessary for the project to move forward, he said.

“If it doesn’t work this year, it doesn’t mean we can’t go for the tax credits in another year if it makes sense to do that,” he said. “A lot of properties across the state go through the process two or three times. There’s no guarantee of ever being funded, but it doesn’t mean you can’t try again later.

As part of the plan, the developers are considering two-, three-, and four-bedroom units, and the net rent would be $650 to $850, Brock said.

He said the county's Technical Review Committee is expected to consider the proposal at an upcoming meeting.