Local non-profit organizations have come together to build a housing
community for low-income residents and seniors south of East Irvington
Road between South First Avenue and South Park Avenue.
Work
will begin on the project this summer and bring more affordable housing
to Tucson. The Sunnyside Pointe community is the joint effort of La
Frontera Inc., the Tucson Urban League and Old Pueblo Community
Services.
The completed development will include 225 units
and is expected to be finished by the end of 2010. There will be 142
single-family homes with three to four bedrooms, two bathrooms and a
one-car garage, and 83 rental properties for senior living.
The homes will be built by Pepper-Viner Homes and will have “higher
energy efficiency,” said Terry Galligan, housing development director
for Old Pueblo Community Services.
“We want seniors to live as comfortably and independently as possible,” said Dan Ranieri, CEO of La Frontera.
To qualify for a single-family home, applicants must follow federal
Department of Housing and Urban Development guidelines that define a
first-time home buyer as someone who has not purchased a home in the
last three years.
Galligan said they are looking for families that earn between $20,000 and $24,000 a year or slightly higher.
The
funding for the community came from several sources, including grant
money from the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco and the Pima
County General Obligation bond.
The project doesn’t promise
to create many jobs, instead they are looking to save and maintain
existing jobs in the marketplace.
“Their will be many many dozens that will be employed by the time it’s all over, by maintaining jobs,” said Galligan.
Sunnyside
Pointe homes should be on the market by this fall. For more information
on the homes contact the Tucson Urban League at 791-9522 or Old Pueblo
Community Services at 546-0122.
