The Santa Paula City Council voted unanimously to approve $1.6 million in loans for two affordable housing projects located about 2 miles apart.
The Topa Vista Villas, a 90-unit affordable housing community
at 500-550 W. Harvard Blvd., will receive a $1 million loan, while a $600,000 loan will go to the Gateway Grove, a 20-unit permanent supportive housing project at 1445 E. Main St. The Gateway Grove project will transform the Santa Paula Motel into housing.The loans, approved at 3% annual interest, will come from the city’s affordable housing trust fund, which was created to support affordable housing development and preservation and address local housing needs, according to an Oct. 7 staff report.
“These are mandated numbers that we need for
our community, and we do need affordable homes, in my view, as we’ve all discussed, to bring in families and bring in the workforce,” said Council member Leslie Conejo.
The city’s affordable housing trust fund oversight committee reviewed both projects and recommended approval, said James Mason, community and economic development director.
The fund contains about $2.4 million generated from developers who choose to pay an in-lieu fee rather than build affordable housing under the city’s inclusionary housing ordinance, he said. The ordinance requires developers of market-rate housing to build either a percentage of affordable units, construct affordable housing offsite, or make an in-lieu payment, Mason said.
After both projects receive the loans, the city will be reimbursed at a later date. Most affordable housing projects carry 55-year deed restrictions, which typically match the loan term, Mason said. Repayment often begins within 12 to 15 years, depending on funding, cash flow and refinancing opportunities, he said.
“The ability to recycle that money is really important because we don’t know where needs will be in the future, and we’re limited as far as how much more housing we’ll get that will provide those in-lieu payments,” he said.
Mason said housing costs have increased over the last 15 years, making projects like these dependent on a complex mix of partnerships: city, county, state and federal funding and tax credits.
Council member Jenny Crosswhite said 15% of the units at Topa Vista Villas will be reserved for residents with mobility impairments and 10% for residents with visual or hearing impairments.
Wes Woods II covers West County for the Ventura County Star. Reach him at wesley.woodsii@vcstar.com, 805-437-0262 or @JournoWes.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Santa Paula approves $1.6M in affordable housing loans
