A housing development in Fresno, California, has marked a ribbon-cutting milestone for a project intended to provide 113 affordable rental homes for families and individuals, including 45 homes set aside for veterans.
The Dakota project, at the junction of Blackstone and Dakota avenues, will have 114 units in total. The additional unit is for an on-site property manager. Although the ceremony took place on 13 November, construction is expected to finish in December; the ribbon-cutting does not mean the development is complete.
UPholdings, RH Community Builders, local leaders and community members joined the California Strategic Growth Council for the milestone. The four-storey building occupies the site of the former Smuggler’s Restaurant in central Fresno.
Homes for families and veterans
The residential mix comprises 53 one-bedroom, 30 two-bedroom and 30 three-bedroom affordable apartments. The one-bedroom manager’s unit brings the overall building total to 114. That distinction matters when comparing the number of homes available to renters with the full number of units in the development.
The apartments are intended for households with qualifying incomes under limits set at 30, 50 and 60 per cent of area median income. Area median income is a local income benchmark used in housing programmes; a household’s eligibility depends on the rules for the relevant home and programme, not simply on the headline number of units.
The project also anticipates 45 vouchers through the US Department of Housing and Urban Development and Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing programme. Known as HUD-VASH, the programme combines rental assistance for veterans experiencing homelessness with case management and clinical services. The planned veteran allocation should not be mistaken for a count of people who have already moved in.
The property manager is accepting expressions of interest. The development’s planned shared spaces include a community room and kitchen, fitness room, outdoor picnic area, playground and bicycle parking. Apartments are designed with air conditioning and private balconies, while shade, insulation and filtration are intended to help residents cope with extreme heat.
Housing and support on one site
The project is intended to bring housing together with access to support services. Plans include a free on-site medical clinic operated by Family HealthCare Network and additional support from Fresno Mission City Center. Those services are part of the development’s proposed offer, rather than a guarantee that every service is already operating.
Under a city housing agreement, 11 two- and three-bedroom apartments supported through the HOME housing programme are to remain affordable for 55 years. These are floating units: the restriction applies to the required number of qualifying homes rather than necessarily fixing the same apartment numbers throughout the period. The 55-year condition relates to those HOME-assisted units and should not be read as a stated term for every apartment in the building.
The site was originally put forward for a senior housing and community centre proposal. The plan was revised to provide affordable housing for lower-income households and veterans after the city identified a different location for the senior scheme.
Links to the surrounding streets
The housing forms part of a wider approach that ties development to transport improvements. State-backed plans include a lane-mile of protected bikeways, improvements at six bus stops, three new crossings and nearly 5,000 feet of new or improved pavement.
There is also operational funding intended to improve the frequency of the Route 39 bus service, alongside the purchase and operation of electric passenger vans for a local vanpool project. Funding and planned improvements are not the same as completed works or a confirmed change to the bus timetable.
California’s Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities programme supports the project and its transport elements. The combination is designed to give future residents more ways to reach services and travel around the neighbourhood, linking the investment in homes with the streets and public transport around them.
