SOLEDAD — Soledad City Council has authorized the purchase of 4.61 acres of property located at 540 Gabilan Drive to facilitate the construction of about 100 affordable rental units.
At a cost of $1.728 million, the purchase was funded by the Successor Housing Agency ($1.3 million) and the American Rescue Plan Act ($428,000).
The purchase comes after the City Council meeting on Dec. 13, during which the Council authorized City Manager Megan Hunter to execute a non-binding Letter of Intent (LOI) for the purchase from Gabilan Apartments, LLC.
The LOI was executed on Dec. 20, and $10,000 of earnest money was deposited into escrow on Jan. 9. The Purchase and Sale Agreement was approved during the City Council meeting on Jan. 17.
City of Soledad plans to select a developer to build at least 100 affordable apartment units on the site. This will support the City’s efforts to achieve its Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) of 724 units.
“Finding a safe and affordable place to live and to raise a family is one of the biggest challenges residents in Soledad face,” Hunter said. “With the purchase of 540 Gabilan, the City Council demonstrated a commitment to implementing creative solutions to the housing crisis and providing much-needed affordable housing for our residents.”
With the transfer of the property to the City of Soledad, the City will initiate a Request For Proposal (RFP) process to identify a responsible, affordable housing developer to construct the housing on the site.
The City plans to reach out to the community for input on developer qualifications and a conceptional site design. It is anticipated that the RFP will be issued in May and a developer selected by July.
The housing site is immediately next to the Toledo Basin, an approximately 3.7-acre site that is planned to be developed as a park.
“The development of these properties will have a synergetic impact, significantly transforming the City and enhancing the lives of our residents,” the City stated in a news release March 5.
