City Council greenlights two apartment complexes

One development will include 53 apartments classified as 100% affordable housing units

WATSONVILLE >> Two new apartment complexes, one of which will contain 100% affordable units, are set to be built in Watsonville, after city councilmembers green-lighted the proposals Tuesday evening.

The Residence — a mixed-use building with a lower-floor restaurant, and upper-floor apartment building complex — was approved unanimously by the council and is set to be built at 558 Main St.

The four-story building, to be constructed by Pacific Coast Development will contain a mix of studios, one-bedroom apartments, and two-bedroom apartments — 40 of those dwellings will be “normalrate” units, and 10 affordable units.

Rent levels are estimated to be between $1,700 a month minimum, into the $2,000 range and upward. According to William Hansen, future residents would include blue-collar workers, and others such as nurses and first responders.

While some Watsonville residents expressed support for the complex, community member Gabe Medina voiced concerns that monthly rents were too high.

“Our city is being pushed out, they’re going to Salinas, they’re going to Gonzales, they’re going to Soledad because we’re not listening to them and their needs. We are a predominately agriculture city, what farm working family is going to be able to afford to be in this building? None,” Medina said.

Councilmember Eduardo Montesino acknowledged that rent rates at the Residence would not be affordable for many, but that housing across the board in Watsonville is needed.

“We need housing. And I understand people’s feelings, but we need both,” Montesino said. “Some people are right — that we’re being pushed out of our community — but by not approving projects like this one, people leave more. I believe this is a good project and I want to make the motion.”

The development was

approved unanimously.

Affordable apartment complex

A second development, featuring all affordable units, is slated to be built in Watsonville at 1482 Freedom Blvd.

That complex will contain 53 affordable units spread out across two three-story buildings and feature a mix of one-, twoand three-bedroom apartments. Twenty-six of those apartments will be onebedroom units.

A tenant’s monthly rent will range from $580 a month, to $1,240. Onebedroom units are approximately 540 square feet, two-bedroom apartments are slated to be around 800 square feet and three-bedroom will be approximately 1,000 square feet.

The complex will feature solar panels and run on 100% electric energy, rather than fossil fuel sources, according to Max Henninger, a project developer with Eden Housing. It will also contain a playfield for kids, a family gathering space outside with grills, picnic benches as well as a computer lab and laundry facility.

The units are to-be-occupied by farmworkers and their families, people experiencing homelessness, and community members with disabilities, according to Henninger.

Thirty-seven of the future tenants will be selected by the Santa Cruz County Housing Authority. At least six of those units are set aside for families and individuals experiencing homelessness, Henninger said. Another six of those units will be reserved for people with developmental disabilities.

Watsonville Mayor Jimmy Dutra said the selection process means it’s not clear how many city residents would be selected to move in.

“A lot of these units are going to be bringing people in from other parts of the county, people from Boulder Creek, Santa Cruz and Capitola,” Dutra said.

Watsonville city councilmembers motioned to approve the affordable apartment complex with a 6-1 vote, with Mayor Dutra dissenting.