The Walnut Creek City Council last week approved a $6 million loan to a Berkeley-based affordable-housing developer toward a $68.2 million, 95-unit mixed housing and commercial project downtown.
According to Rocket Loans review, the loan was approved for Resources for Community Development, which plans to build the four-story building at 699 Ygnacio Valley Road, at the southwest corner at the intersection of North Civic Drive.
Remnants of an abandoned gas station now sit on that .86-acre parcel; the site has been environmentally cleaned up, and the state Water Resources Control Board has cleared the site for mixed residential-commercial
development, according to a city staff report.
RCD is in the process of buying the parcel from Hall Equities Group, a Walnut Creek-based real estate investment and development company.
Plans are for construction to begin in late 2022, with completion in mid-2024, depending on some of the funding comes through, said Nick Cranmer, RCD’s acquisitions project manager.
The 94 living units — studios and one-, two- and three-bedroom variants — would be set aside for extremely low- and low-income households with incomes between 30 and 60 percent of the area median income. About a
quarter of those units, Cranmer said, would be set aside for formerly homeless families.
One unit would be for the building’s manager.
RCD had originally requested $10 million from Walnut Creek toward the $68.2 million project cost. The city, however, had just over $6 million available in a fund restricted to the development of new affordable housing.
The parcel’s downtown location three blocks from the Walnut Creek BART station make the 699 Ygnacio Valley Road site well-suited for a commercial-affordable, bicycle-friendly housing project, Cranmer said. RCD, he said, will pursue a state Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities program grant to help fund it.
Walnut Creek city planners say the downtown location will help enable this project to meet several of the city’s housing, environmental sustainability and transportation planning goals.
RCD has built three other “affordable” projects in Walnut Creek, most recently St. Paul’s Commons, a 44-unit apartment building that houses the Trinity Center, a daytime non-residential program serving the homeless.
It also built the 58-unit Riviera Apartments just north of the Walnut Creek BART station; those units also are for low-income renters.
“The City of Walnut Creek has been a good partner with us on affordable housing,” Cranmer said.
23 comments
Sure 800k “affordable housing”
Agenda 2021/2030 sustainable development in full swing in Walnut Creek
More high density in-fill!! The intersection and portion of YV Road is a congested nightmare under normal commute.
Isn’t that lot used to be multiple gas stations? And is not the SSA office across the street and few feet east from YV? Perfect site for the low income to occupy and have convenient access to obtain taxpayer supported payouts.
Newsflash we don’t want homeless low income people here it’s not about race it’s about earning the right to live here why are you shipping people in here because they can’t get their life together usually that’s because they have issues mentally so thank you for bringing people with mental issues into our area because you want to be a bleeding heart liberal but the reality of this is it’s all about greed
Guess I’ll have to start going to the Target in San Ramon.
I thought Walnut Creek just had to cut their budget?
The WC Council is an active participant in Marxist housing policy?
There is already a huge shoplifting problem at Broadway Plaza and the trail is becoming an unsafe place to walk at night
Biden says he wants to expand the Affirmative Furthering Fair Housing started by Obama (just ended by Trump executive order)
The goal is to equalize communities by race
They will actively select Oakland residents and pay to move them to WC
This project could be the final straw for WC and it will never recover
Time to wake up
Vote R in Nov
So I guess we are out of danger for droughts????? With all these apartments going in and multiple people in each dwelling, they will be using a lot of water! Oh, that’s right, it is ALL about MONEY. All they care about is how much the city can make with these new apartments. More money for the city as they will spend money on restaurants, etc. Meanwhile, we all have to suffer with water rationing and more pollution.
Apartments/condos use very low amounts of water per person. It is landscape irrigation that accounts for the majority of suburban household water use. Of course farms, industry and businesses account for huge share of the water supply after releases for environmental reasons.
“Of course farms, industry and businesses account for huge share of the water supply after releases for environmental reasons.”
I guess Iditots doesn’t want to eat.
If you look at the apartment buildings in Lafayette they all have a nice design. Not so with what they have been building in Walnut Creek lately. They look like tenement buildings. The corner of Civic and Ygnacio is right out there in the open so if they are going to build something there it should have a good design. Not to look like it was made out of old cargo containers.
I agree wholeheartedly with Ricardoh and Bill Cutting
Lafayette apartments are charming. Walnut creek’s look like an embarrassing joke. Plus, when you walk in many smell like Dog urine or the strong coverup they use.
All we do is put up with Construction and leaf blowing noise, but nothing looks any better.
We need a new cast of characters in City Hall that have a brain and some taste.
I guess Hall Equities is laughing all the way to the bank.
They were supposed to be building a ‘beautiful’ hotel as an entrance to Walnut Creek at that location. 🤣🤣🤣🤣
Time to put up the FOR SALE sign.
I’m going while the going is good.
Council will be glad. I ask tooooo many questions, and know toooooo much.
Why work hard to live somewhere nice when someone else wants to give it to others for a third of the cost?
Walnut creek is the old Oakland. look around you!
Turn Walnut Creek into Concord? 🤣
WE DO NOT NEED TO BUILD ANYMORE!!! THE BAY AREA IS ALREADY SO DAMN CONGESTED!!!
You can’t keep adding population without keeping up with transportation.
Wow the latests in control of the local governments in wc are hell bent on turning walnut creek into a 3rd would sh*thole With all this section 8 housing expansion. I mean damn do the home owners in bay area cities have any say so at all?? But it doesn’t matter anyway walnut creek is full of a bunch of soyboy self hating white liberals so its good to see them get what they deserve…👌
Nutty Creek has Big City Envy (my husband calls it urban penis envy). Below average brain sizes are trying to make up for below average intelligence by attempting to copy urban centers. Several of the many such attempts include the the Cartoon-Disney Land Mall that used to be Broadway Plaza, the “acquisition” of the blue box jewelry store, and the over-construction of cracker box housing units. And that would be unit$$$$$.
Me thinks They thinks we won’t/don’t notice but watch for new luxury cars in certain driveways, new finely knit women’s suits, and red-soled shoes, and private schools for the grandflakes.
I miss the old affordable, better looking (with sun shade awnings) Broadway Plaza. The new one is a real shopper repellent.
Over $715,000 per unit.
oh brother let me get my kwai focals again. And my inlaws the seals are needing to be fed again. oh oh oh oh .
Didn’t the WC council just ‘loan’ over $3 million to Habitat for the 40+ project at the PH Bart? And sold a quarter acre in another area to Habitat for $10. And now a $6 million ‘loan’.
Are we now the Bank of Walnut Creek?
And when will the ‘visiting actors’ home be sold to a deserving family? Maybe the proceeds could be used to pay for crossing guards for the next 15 years.
If you read the emails sent to the council about impending cutbacks, the biggest concern is eliminating crossing guards. This council will continue to pay a video producing team, two spokes models, and choreographers and artistic directors. Come on, think about needs and wants.
When school is in session, the council probably doesn’t have children who walk or bike to school. Sad.
Leftist politicians actively want to destroy the peace and prosperity of communities which have fought long and hard for it.
If they make your life horrible by importing violence, then you will accept any solution they propose, and if you complain about what is happening, then you are a horrible racist and you may lose your job, friends, and family through shaming on social media and pressure against your company.
This is all part of their plan. There will be many more forced importations of violent elements. Don’t vote blue.
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