With the snip of a ribbon, La Esperanza De Alton, a new $10.1 million, 80-unit affordable apartment community in Alton, Texas was officially declared open yesterday. The event was attended by federal, state and local public officials, including U.S. Congressman Ruben Hinojosa, State Senator Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, Representative Bobby Guerra, State Director USDA Rural Development Paco Valentin and Alton Mayor Salvador Vela, along with community leaders, members of the ownership and development team and residents.

“We believe every person deserves a place to call home.  We designed and built La Esperanza de Alton apartment homes as an affordable housing option for working families to have all of the quality and amenities of market rate apartments at an affordable rent.  La Esperanza de Alton is such a place,” said Linda Brown, Casa Linda Development Corporation.

The contemporary, two-story garden-style apartment community features 16 one-bedroom, 40 two-bedroom and 24 three-bedroom units.  Of the 80 units, 72 are for families earning 30 to 60 percent of the area median income (AMI) and eight units are priced at market rate rents. Six of the units have been set aside for persons with disabilities.

Apartment amenities include nine-foot ceilings, full-sized energy efficient appliances including a refrigerator, stove/oven, built-in microwave, garbage disposal, dishwasher, and washer/dryers.  Each unit also has a spacious covered balcony or patio. Community amenities include a community clubhouse with kitchen, common area, Wi-Fi service, an on-site leasing office with property manager, plus a business center with computers and printer/scanner, and children’s activity center. 

Also included is a playscape, perimeter fencing with secured gated access, exterior lighting, a pavilion with swimming pool and picnic tables, barbecue grills and extensive landscaping.  La Esperanza De Alton also offers an active social services program to fit resident needs. The community’s convenient location at 320 S. Stewart Blvd. gives residents easy access to major transportation corridors, and elementary, middle and high schools, as well as to retail services.

CLDC Alton, L.P.is the owner of the project. The general partner is CLDC Alton GP, LLC that is owned by Dallas-based Casa Linda Development Corporation (CLDC). Affordable Housing Partners, Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway Company, is the limited partner. In addition to the tax credits, Bonneville Multifamily provided the USDA 538 permanent loan and the City of Alton Development Corporation provided a secondary loan. Jim Gwin Architects of Houston designed the community. Brownstone Construction, also of Houston, was the general contractor.

To finance the development, in 2014 La Esperanza De Alton was awarded $815,601 annually over a ten-year period in tax credits from the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA).  The Housing Tax Credit Program is a competitive program administered by the TDHCA that creates housing opportunities for working families.  Developers compete annually for available housing tax credits to be used to attract investors to provide the necessary funds to build the project. The public/private federal program is the most successful affordable rental housing production program in U.S. history. Investors use the credits to offset a portion of their federal income taxes.

UAH Property Management. L.P. of Dallas manages the day to day operations of the property. UAH brings over 10 years of management experience and a proven successful track record of delivering personable service to the residents.  For more information about leasing, please contact a UAH leasing specialist in the La Esperanza de Alton leasing office at 956-609-3100.