NHC member Eden Housing recently celebrated the grand opening of Ford Road Plaza, an affordable development in San Jose. The development offers 75 affordable rental units for residents with annual incomes between 15 and 50 percent of the Santa Clara County area median income.
The 2.4 acre community was purchased by the City of San Jose with the last of its redevelopment funds. The funds were used by redevelopment agencies to renovate deteriorating areas before agencies in San Joe were eliminated. The development features a computer learning center, a courtyard and barbeque area, a community room and two playgrounds. Residents will also be able to benefit from financial literacy classes, energy and water use efficiency education, various health and safety programs and from technology training. The community is also conveniently located near several public transportation options and includes the latest green features to ensure long-term energy efficiency.
“We are proud to partner with cities that are making room in their communities for lower income households to live with their families in the same community where they work,” Eden Housing Vice chair Tim Silva said in a press release. “These folks are important to our communities and they need a place to live.”
Data from Housing Landscape 2015 shows that 17 percent of households in the San Jose metro area spend at least half of their income on housing costs, just above the 16 percent national average. Renters are more likely to be cost burdened than owners, with 23 percent spending at least half their income on housing. Developments like Ford Road Plaza lessen the burden low-income families and individuals face when trying to find affordable rental homes in expensive areas.
Ford Road Plaza was financed primarily with federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits.