Plans for affordable homes advance
Santa Clara County aims to buy land to ease costs for developers
SAN JOSE >> Plans to build hundreds of affordable homes at four South Bay sites are pushing ahead, with Santa Clara County planning to buy the land for the projects to help shave the development costs.
The affordable housing developments would sprout at two sites in San Jose, as well as one in Santa Clara and another in Morgan Hill, according to Santa Clara County officials.
“These projects are all getting ready to close on the construction financing to build them out,” said Consuelo Hernandez, director of Santa Clara County's Office of Supportive Housing.
After getting final approval from the county Board of Supervisors, the county will be able to buy the land sites for the respective projects.
All told, 324 units — every one of them affordable — are slated to be developed at the quartet of sites. Here are some key details for each apartment project:
• Algarve Apartments, 91 units, 1135 E. Santa Clara St. in San Jose.
• Roosevelt Park Apartments, 80 units, 21 N. 21st St. in San Jose just east of the downtown.
• Kifer Senior Apartments, 80 units, 3335 Kifer Road in Santa Clara.
• Royal Oaks Village, 73 units, 15440 Monterey Road
in Morgan Hill.
In recent days, Santa Clara County also bought sites in San Jose where affordable homes would be built.
To cut the development costs, the county also agreed to lease back the land to the project developer for $1 a year.
The developers of the two sites that the county just purchased will be completely responsible for completing the projects, including obtaining investment and construction financing.
Mariposa Place at 750 W. San Carlos St. between Sunol Street and Mcevoy Street is one of the projects. Mariposa Place would consist of 80 affordable apartments that would be developed by Danco Group, a real estate firm based in Humboldt County.
Vitalia Apartments at 3090 S. Bascom Ave. in San Jose between Foxworth Avenue and Camden Avenue is the other project.
Vitalia would consist of 79 affordable apartments
that would be developed by an alliance of San Diegobased Affirmed Housing and Compass for Affordable Housing.
The Affirmed Housingled group on Jan. 28 obtained about $46 million in construction financing for the Vitalia Apartments project from MUFG Union Bank, county property documents show.
“Both Mariposa Place and Vitalia Apartments should start construction this month,” Hernandez said.
Since land costs are a significant financial component in the development of any project, residential or commercial, the county's decision to buy the land and lease the land to the respective builders helps cut back on the overall expense.
“If there is an opportunity to save in the total development costs, we'll try that,” Hernandez said. “It's a chance to save money. Land expenses can drive up the costs significantly.”