Oxnard : Council to Consider Low-Income Housing

The Oxnard City Council tonight will weigh into the controversy surrounding a proposed low-income apartment complex in the city’s downtown district.

Council members will be asked to approve the 32-unit project, known as Villa Solimar, planned for a 1.5-acre site at Donlon Avenue and Driffill Boulevard.

Nearby residents and business owners oppose the development, fearing that it will boost crime and sink property values. Opponents also are concerned that children who live in the new complex will have to cross Oxnard Boulevard to get to school.

Based on a letter citing traffic concerns, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has temporarily withheld $263,000 in grant money requested by the city to help build the apartments.

The money will be withheld until the city can ensure that the busy boulevard poses no threat to children in the complex, according to HUD.

The Oxnard Planning Commission has approved the project.

And city housing officials and the housing developer, Saticoy-based Cabrillo Economic Development Corp., say the three-story project is a good one and much-needed in Oxnard.

“We have designed Villa Solimar to be an asset to the neighborhood and to its residents, as well as adjacent residents and businesses,” said Rodney Fernandez, Cabrillo’s executive director.

The units will be available to families earning between $20,000 and $40,000 a year. Monthly rent will be about $700. Cabrillo will oversee construction and management of the apartment complex.

The council is scheduled to consider the matter at 7 p.m. at the City Council chambers, 305 W. 3rd St.