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Onyx+East is a full-service homebuilder executing development, construction, marketing, design, and sales from its four offices across Florida and the Midwest. Focused on building townhomes, duets, and single-family homes, Onyx+East concentrates on providing thoughtfully designed homes in the heart of thriving communities.����

With roots in the city, the company strives to create homes that offer homeowners a beautiful and relaxed space within a stone’s throw of key amenities. We speak with CEO, Kelli Lawrence, about the company’s growth and the projects occupying its current focus.��������

“Onyx+East was founded in 2015 to focus on the urban housing market, which we felt had been underserved during the housing upturn in the early 2000s,” Kelli opens. “While several apartment blocks and rental properties were being built in many urban areas, there wasn’t much new, for sale housing being built. The genesis of Onyx+East was to create housing options for that underserved market in Indianapolis, which is where we initially focused our business.������

“Since then, we’ve expanded to other urban and suburban areas not only in Indianapolis, but also in the Tampa Bay region of Florida, and Cincinnati and Columbus in Ohio. Our first expansion was to Florida in 2018, where we built 37 townhomes in Tampa’s Hyde Park, followed by further expansion into the neighboring area of St Pete. We then entered two key markets in Ohio – Columbus and Cincinnati – in 2022, taking our place among the Midwest’s premier builders.������

“We focus on building unique housing solutions in places that are most attractive to where people want to live, which are typically great infill locations that are connected to valuable lifestyle amenities like cafes, restaurants, and retail outlets,” she continues. “As we’ve grown, we’ve ventured into also providing build-to-rent housing, creating housing options for people who want to live in a more traditional single-family home environment but are choosing to rent. However, most of our projects are townhomes, duets, and other forms of attached housing. These are typically part of denser housing communities because of our infill nature, and we now build either for sale or for rent depending on the location.”����

Culture and values��

Turning to the company’s capabilities, Kelli explains: “We are truly a full-service developer and builder, performing everything from land acquisition to construction. We have our own brokerage in each of the markets we serve, so that our sales teams can sell directly in each community. We’re vertically integrated in everything we do, which enables us to offer the full spectrum of services on both the development and building processes.������

“We’ve recently focused on expanding and strengthening our enterprise systems as we continue to grow, and we recognize the importance of having robust processes that can scale in line with the number and type of projects we take on. We’re passionate about leveraging technology and we’re experimenting with AI to find the most valuable applications, whether it helps early in the process with due diligence and research, later with graphic design and rendering, or even helping with customer service and our responsiveness to the homeowner.����

“It’s also important to us that we retain our culture and values,” she states. “Our values tie together everything we do, so they spell out TIE IT: together, integrity, execution, innovation, and transformation. Our entire team demonstrates these values both internally and externally, taking time to support the communities we operate in wherever possible.”����

Considering the company’s impressive growth, it comes as no surprise that Onyx+East is currently building its largest ever project. “The Flora community consists of 121 homes in West Carmel, Indiana, which has won several awards for being one of the best places to live in the US,” Kelli elaborates. “This project speaks to our core of providing housing types that aren’t readily available and delivering projects in great communities with lots of amenities.������

“Carmel is a unique location offering a low-maintenance lifestyle, with great schools, a thriving art scene, and ample dining and entertainment options. This community is all about embracing and celebrating the beauty of nature too, as it is located close to The Monon Trail, and the community itself is surrounded by a beautiful pond and an abundance of trees. Four styles of home are available, including single-family residences, rooftop-deck homes, pitched-roof townhomes, and courtyard duet homes, all of which have plenty of customizable options and feature open-concept interiors, modern finishes, and energy-saving technologies.”������

Expansion opportunities��

Kelli is keen to highlight another recent project, Onyx+East’s first ever Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified home. “We are extremely excited to deliver our first LEED-certified community, Everly, for which we’re currently seeking silver certification,” Kelli shares. “Everly is in the fantastic, connected neighborhood of East Walnut Hills within Cincinnati, Ohio. The area boasts great schools, proximity to restaurants, entertainment, and retail spaces, and is a short drive from the Central Business District and University Districts.������

“Being LEED certified, Everly’s homes meet high levels of sustainability and provide additional benefits to homeowners, such as lower long-term cost of ownership, lower utility costs, and significant savings through tax abatements. We’ve thoroughly enjoyed this project and we’re looking forward to building more communities that meet LEED or other sustainability certifications moving forward.����

“We have multiple projects under construction, such as an exciting new project in urban St Pete, Florida, for instance, which features a unique type of townhouse with great walkability to awesome amenities,” she shares. “We’re also in the very early stages of building a suburban community in the Valrico area of Tampa Bay, Florida, as well as new build-to-rent communities in Ohio and Indianapolis.”����

With several projects underway, Onyx+East is sure to experience further growth and success in 2025 and beyond. “There are multiple communities in progress, and I’m sure there will be new communities on the horizon later in 2025, as there are some great expansion opportunities in all the regions I’ve mentioned,” Kelli concludes. “We’ll continue to leverage our amazing teams and processes to deliver unique housing solutions for both sale and rent options.”������

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