Watsonville City Council to consider plans for two new apartment complexes Tuesday

A proposed housing development would bring 53 affordable rental units to Watsonville, should the plan be approved at a city council hearing set for Tuesday evening.

Non-profit developer Eden Housing is proposing the project for 1482 Freedom Boulevard, a vacant 1.8-acre lot near Wendy’s and the Watsonville Catholic Cemetery.

It is one of two significant housing proposals the city will consider on Tuesday; the other is an apartment building at 558 Main St., plans for which Lookout detailed last month.

Development

50-unit apartment building proposed in heart of Watsonville

Development

50-unit apartment building proposed in heart of Watsonville

By Isabella Cueto

The more than four dozen apartments proposed by Eden Housing near the intersection of Freedom and Atkinson Lane would be split across three floors in two buildings connected by an outdoor playground and field area. The complex, to be funded using federal low-income housing tax credits, would exclusively serve very-low-income and extremely-low-income renters. Plans call for:

• Four units to be leased to households making no more than 25% of the Area Median Income.
• 13 units to be leased to households making no more than at 30% AMI.
• 19 units to be leased to households making no more than at 40% AMI.
• 16 units to be leased to households making no more than at 50% AMI.
• One unit for a property manager.

If the project is approved as-is, it will contain 11 one-bedroom units, 26 two-bedroom units and 14 three-bedroom units. The units would range in size from 541 square feet for a one-bedroom apartment to 1,047 square feet for a three-bedroom unit.

A pair of three-story buildings make up the residential development at 1482 Freedom Blvd. — a project going before Watsonville City Council on Tuesday, Feb. 23, 2021.

(Courtesy city of Watsonville (Rendering by Zimmerman + Associates))

The project will have 100 parking spaces on a surface lot, spaces and lockers for 30 bicycles, and a new bus shelter and pullout on Freedom Boulevard “to encourage transit ridership,” according to a memo from city staff.

The ground level of one building will include a multipurpose community room, office space, a classroom and a maintenance shop, according to the plans. Between buildings, the developers are proposing a play area, courtyard and outdoor gathering area with grills and picnic tables.

In exchange for the high levels of affordability the project has, Eden Housing is requesting flexibility in other parameters, such as the need for the project to provide balconies for certain units.

The City Council is set to on the 1482 Freedom Blvd. project on Tuesday night, along with the housing development at 558 Main St.