The San Juan Capistrano City Council unanimously agreed to approve a purchase and sale agreement for a vacant property on Don Juan Avenue and turn it into affordable senior housing.
The owners of the property, Affordable Housing Land Consultants, LLC, planned to build affordable family housing on the lot, consisting of a six-story apartment complex with 107 units and 14 parking spaces. But council members argued that the proposed plan would cause a drastic increase in population and parking problems in the area.
“It would destroy the community,” Councilmember Howard Hart said of the proposed affordable housing development.
Residents, during Tuesday’s City Council meeting and at a community discussion last month, called attention to how narrow of a road Don Juan Avenue is. More drivers would make locals feel less safe and possibly cause more accidents, residents said.
“In this case, I think the senior component is really the only thing that makes it compatible with the neighborhood so I will be supporting that,” said Councilmember John Taylor.
The property will cost San Juan Capistrano $2.35 million. Council members said the city will have more flexibility to design something that will be best for the area. Affordable senior housing, they said, would minimize impacts to the community by bringing fewer drivers to the area and would overall better suit the needs of the neighborhood.
San Juan Capistrano will purchase the 1.8-acre lot using funds from money already set aside in the city’s budget for affordable housing, said Assistant City Manager Matisse Reischl.
The city is in a 60-day due diligence period that will allow it to conduct site assessments to determine if it still wants to purchase the land. After the nearly two-month period, and after a grant deed is filed with the county, the city will be the new owner of the Don Juan Avenue property.
A spokesperson for Affordable Housing Land Consultants could not be reached for comment. Reischl, though, said that the owners of the property were open to the city’s proposal, which eventually led to both sides drafting the purchase and sale agreement for the council to consider.
“With city ownership, that allows the city to have much more say in the process,” Reischl said. “The city could partner with an affordable housing developer to provide a high quality, well-designed senior housing project at a density that is more compatible with the surrounding neighborhood and provide for sufficient parking.”
Hart said that he is not against affordable housing but felt it is important to find what is appropriate for the area. He noted that the community on Don Juan Avenue is one of the oldest in the city and needs to be considered before starting a big project.
Reischl said in addition to the purchase and sale agreement, the council also approved the staff to prepare and distribute a request for proposal. The city will ask affordable housing developers to submit projects they would be interested in constructing, she said.
Hart said it is uncertain when construction for the affordable senior housing but estimated “it could be years.”
