PROVIDENCE — Affordable-housing developer SWAP Inc. is planning to break ground Monday on its first elderly housing project.

The 22 apartments at 201 Thurbers Ave. in lower South Providence are scheduled for completion next May, with occupancy expected in June 2010.

“This is SWAP’s first foray into elderly housing, so we are excited,” said Carla DeStefano, executive director of SWAP (Stop Wasting Abandoned Property.) “It gives us a continuum of housing options for South Side residents at every age level.”

U.S. Sen. Jack Reed, U.S. Rep. James R. Langevin, Mayor David N. Cicilline and Councilman Luis Aponte are expected to participate in the 11 a.m. groundbreaking ceremony.

According to SWAP, the project is being financed with $3.14 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and $470,000 from the City of Providence Department of Planning and Development’s HOME Funds.

The new apartments will be income- as well as age-restricted, meaning that only people who are at least 62 years old and earn no more than 40 percent of median income — about $20,000 per year for a single individual — will be allowed to live there.

Residents will pay 30 percent of their income for rent, according to SWAP.

All 22 units have been designed as one-bedroom apartments with kitchens, baths, and living/dining areas. Common spaces will include community rooms, a computer center, and an outdoor green space.

A staff coordinator will be hired to help residents with social and medical services. Winn Residential will manage the building.

David Presbrey Architects of Providence designed the traditional New England-style building, which will have painted wood siding and shingles.

The now-vacant lot at 201 Thurbers Ave. is less than a quarter-mile from the Route 95 exit, and it is also accessible to public transportation.

The site is near Roger Williams Park, the Broad Street business district, and the Lifespan Hospital complex.

Barbara Sokoloff Associates is the finance and planning consultant for the housing project, and Stand Corporation is the contractor.

cdunn@projo.com