|
Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...
|
Redwood City Council on Monday approved nearly $8 million for Rise City Apartments and took a step toward directing an additional $5.8 million in expected housing fees to another affordable housing project.
The funding would support two projects: Rise City Apartments at 1304 Middlefield Road and a proposed MidPen Housing development at 1580 Maple St. Together, the projects would include more than 170 affordable units.
That money comes through the city’s Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA), which supports new multifamily rental projects and affordable units for low-income and extremely low-income households.
“It is tough for everybody right now, especially for cities,” said Redwood City Mayor Elmer Martínez Saballos. “Not too many cities get to have a fund like this, right? So it’s pretty incredible that we’re able to help projects cross the finish line, especially affordable housing.”
The city’s funding would be structured as a residual receipts loan, meaning the developer would repay the city only with money left after all operating expenses, hard debt, reserves and other necessary fees are paid.
Separately, the Elco Yards project at 1601 El Camino Real is expected to pay approximately $5.8 million in housing impact fees this summer, which would be added to the NOFA bucket. So long as the city receives the money, it will be applied conditionally to the affordable housing project at 1580 Maple St.
The 1580 Maple St. project is on city-owned land, transferred by San Mateo County for the purpose of building affordable housing. MidPen Housing Corporation, the developer, proposes a mixed-use property serving households earning up to 20% to 40% of AMI. The property would have 79 units in total, 23 of which would be designated to serve people with disabilities or other special needs, including unhoused individuals. Construction is expected to begin toward the end of 2027.
Housing application scores were based on physical design, amenities of the project’s location, accessibility and affordability.
The Rise City Apartments is expected to start construction in early 2027, with plans to serve households earning between 20% and 70% of AMI. Of the 94 units, 24 will be reserved for permanent supportive housing, 19 of which will be for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and five for unhoused residents with disabilities. The property has on-site case management staff who support people with developmental disabilities.
The walkability of 1304 Middlefield Road was underscored by the developer and council members as a major value-add, especially given the fact that several of the units will serve residents with disabilities.
Council member Isabella Chu said she and her husband give rides to some men with intellectual disabilities in the area who can’t bike or drive. She’s confident that if they lived in a walkable city center, “it would transform their lives,” equipping them with access to food, entertainment, relationships and greater independence overall.
“Right now, they are trapped,” Chu said. “They cannot go anywhere unless somebody gives them a ride.”
However, 1580 Maple St. is far less walkable, as Council member Chris Sturken pointed out. While the property is not far from a bus stop, the bus is not as “high frequency as elsewhere in Redwood City,” staff noted. Nonetheless, this site concept does have more parking than other parts of the city.
Council member Jeff Gee noted that the city received only two applications for the millions of NOFA that were up for grabs. He worries that “to create a bigger pot of money and have no applicants” is a disconnect.
City staff responded that the only other affordable housing projects the city is aware of in the pipeline are “gatekeeper projects,” meaning they are being provided through an office developer.
Gee also challenged the city staff’s assumption that the projects would require less than two years to complete, saying he thinks they could be completed in as little as 16 months.
All of the affordable units at these properties will be for residents who earn at least 10% less than 80% AMI, which could look like income for a family of four of around $156,000 a year and rent of about $3,000 a month, staff said.
“Both projects are exactly where we should be building affordable housing,” Chu said.
