142 Affordable Apartments Proposed In Pleasanton

PLEASANTON, CA — The Pleasanton City Council will hear a proposal to build a 100% affordable multi-family rental project on a 1.39-acre site at 4780 Chabot Drive, a Housing Element site designated for high-density housing in the Hacienda Business Park area. The current site contains a three-story, approximately 24,000-square-foot office building, according to a city staff report.

If approved, it would represent the first 100% affordable family project in Pleasanton developed with city support.

BRIDGE Housing, a national non-profit affordable housing developer, is proposing up to 142 units, including one, two, and three-bedroom units. 100% of the units would be deed-restricted to families making anywhere from 30 to 70% of the Area Median Income. 38.7% would be restricted to 60% AMI, and 40.1% would be restricted to 70% AMI.

The project would include up to six stories of residential development over underground parking, which could reach up to 75 feet, according to the staff report. While this would exceed the 55-feet, four-story maximum identified for the site in the Object Design Standards, it would fall below the 85-foot height limit allowed elsewhere in Hacienda and recently approved for Innovation-Based Business Uses. As a 100% affordable, transit-proximate project, the development would qualify for an increase in allowable height of up to three stories, or 33 feet, above the otherwise allowed maximum height without city approval. State law would also exempt the project from on-site parking requirements, though BRIDGE is proposing at least 0.5 parking spaces per unit.

BRIDGE could assemble roughly 90% of its funding from federal and state tax credits, a permanent mortgage, deferred developer fees, and a loan from the California Housing Finance Authority’s Mixed-Income Program.

BRIDGE is proposing funding the remainder of the project through a city allocation of affordable housing impact fees, paid directly into the project by one or more private development projects. The applicant for the Positas Park Project on 5976-5994 West Las Positas Boulevard, another project undergoing city review, has reached a tentative agreement with BRIDGE to allocate a funding amount equivalent to its required Low Income Housing Fund contribution to the project, estimated at $10.4 million to $10.5 million. The arrangement would require City council approval and approval of an affordable housing agreement.

BRIDGE is also requesting fee waivers or deferral of Development Impact Fees, building permit fees, plan check fees, and inspection fees, which staff estimates could generate approximately $8.5 million. Staff said this funding structure is permissible with council approval.

The City Council is not being asked to approve the development or commit funding at Tuesday’s meeting. Staff is instead seeking preliminary feedback on the project and its financing strategy.

See here for more information, and here for Tuesday’s full agenda.