San Diego's City Heights neighborhood is set for a considerable transformation with today's groundbreaking of "Cuatro at City Heights," a $98 million affordable housing project to tackle the city's pressing housing crisis. According to FOX 5 San Diego, the 117-unit complex will offer a new lease on life for low-income families and homeless veterans, right where vacant lots have been gathering dust for years along University Avenue and El Cajon Boulevard.
Serving more than just a roof over heads, the project comes with 13,000 square feet of commercial space dedicated to local community organizations such as the United Women of East Africa and the Refuge Assistance Center. Covering four city-owned parcels, the redevelopment has taken a multi-faceted financial approach, blending nine different funding sources for construction estimated to cost roughly $840,000 per unit. In a statement obtained by the San Diego Housing Commission, Mayor Todd Gloria highlighted the project's significance, "We will continue to push as hard as we possibly can until we can get a roof over everyone’s heads at prices they can afford."
The "Cuatro at City Heights" is co-developed by the City Heights Community Development Corporation and Wakeland Housing and Development Corporation. Echoing the city's efforts to support its most vulnerable, City Council President Sean Elo-Rivera remarked on preserving the community's fabric, "It’s also going to preserve the opportunity for folks who grow up here to stay in this community and fight for this community," he told the San Diego Housing Commission's news release.
Beyond providing affordable living spaces, the complex aims to create a cultural nexus, complete with bicycle parking, laundry facilities and outdoor courtyards. Alexis Villanueva, president & CEO of City Heights Community Development, believes the new center will allow for solution-driven community engagements, according to her interview with FOX 5 San Diego. The project is strategically located near public transit and essential amenities, adding to its list of benefits.
Finances for "Cuatro at City Heights" are bolstered by the issuance of multifamily housing revenue bonds and loans from varying city and state programs, such as the California Department of Housing and Community Development. With a nod to residents' well-being, services on-site will include financial literacy training and emergency food distribution, furthering the project's value beyond mere construction.
