City to Lend Cash for Senior Housing

The city will back a partnership of investors with a $1.7-million loan to build an affordable housing complex for seniors.

City Council members unanimously agreed Monday to loan the developers redevelopment funds, to be repaid at a 3% interest rate over 40 years.

The developers, in turn, have promised to rent all 59 of the apartments at rates affordable to tenants over the age of 62 whose income is below the county median. Those rents will remain affordable for 55 years.

In Orange County, the median income for a household of one is $42,900 per year and for a household of two is $49,050. The developers will rent 50 of the new apartments to those earning 35% to 45% of the median and nine units to those earning between 45% to 60% of the median, officials said.

Demolition and construction at the 1.4-acre site on Melrose Street between Western and Knott avenues began this week. The partners said they hope to begin moving in tenants by the end of the year.

The original developer, KD Housing Partners of Newport Beach, brought in partners Kaufman and Broad Multi-Housing Group of Los Angeles and Linc Housing Corp., a nonprofit housing corporation in Irvine, to form the Buena Park Affordable Housing Limited Partnership.