Gardena, California-based Highridge Costa Development Company has announced that El Sereno Senior Living, a $21 million, 136-unit affordable apartment community in Cibolo, Texas for seniors age 55 and older, has reached 90 percent occupancy just four months after opening.

Located at 213 Somerset Avenue in Cibolo, the new three-story wrap style apartment community features 136 units, including 99 one-bedroom apartments and 37 two-bedroom apartments.  Of the total, 119 units are for seniors earning 30 to 60 percent of the area median income (AMI) and 17 units are at market rate rents. Ten of the units were set aside for persons with disabilities. 

“We are happy with the swift pace of leasing the apartments at El Sereno, which represents 30 or more units leased per month since the community was formally opened at the end of February, and is a strong market demand indicator for a senior development,” said Mohannad H. Mohanna, President and Managing Member of Highridge Costa Development Company, LLC.

For more information, interested parties can call 830-730-5949 TTY: 711.

The apartments include nine-foot ceilings, full-size energy efficient appliances, including refrigerators, stove/oven, built-in microwave, garbage disposal, dishwasher, covered balconies or patios, and washer/dryer connections. Community amenities include a community clubhouse with kitchen, Wi-Fi, on-site leasing office with property manager, game room, fitness room, yoga room, and laundry room. 

Also available to residents is a walking path, exterior lighting, a courtyard with swimming pool and picnic tables, barbecue grills, bocce ball court, and beautiful landscaping.  El Sereno offers an active social services program to fit resident needs. The property’s convenient Civic Center, post office, YMCA, Super Wal-Mart, and other retail services make this an ideal location for seniors seeking a new quality apartment community at affordable rents.

Dallas-based Casa Linda Development Corporation co-developed El Sereno, which was designed by Humphreys & Partners Architects with HCHP Contractors, L.P. serving as the general contractor.  UAH Property Management of Dallas, Texas provides property management services.

To finance the development, El Sereno was awarded $1,500,000 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 and is administered by the TDHCA.

The Housing Tax Credit Program creates housing opportunities for working families by offering tax credits to investors. The public/private federal program is the most successful affordable rental housing production program in U.S. history. Investors purchase credits allocated to competitive applications proposing by TDHCA and use the credits to offset a portion of their federal income taxes.

Bank of America was the tax credit investor and is providing the permanent debt. In addition, the Cibolo Economic Development Corporation provided an economic development grant of $250 for the development and construction of the affordable housing.

SOUTH LOS ANGELES, December 14, 2018 – State and local public officials, including Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, Los Angeles Councilmember Curren Price, Jr., and Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, as well as community leaders, and members of the ownership and development team joined together today to officially break ground on the $32 million RISE Apartments located at 4050 South Figueroa Street in South Los Angeles.

The new permanent supportive housing community will provide much-needed housing for homeless veterans and other homeless individuals earning 30 to 50 percent of the area median income (AMI) who are transitioning into a supportive housing community.

The five-story structure will have one level of subterranean parking and features 56 studio units and one one-bedroom manager’s unit. In designing the community, special elements were taken into account to address livability, comfort, and safety of the residents, as well as the long-term management of the building. 

Units will be fully furnished and include a kitchenette with refrigerator, cooktop, and microwave. Community amenities will include a community room, a residential courtyard, roof terraces, bike storage, covered parking, onsite management, and laundry facilities.  The building will also provide three supportive services/case management offices to be located on the fourth and fifth floors.

In addition to the residential community, there will be 3,400 square feet of community commercial office space.  This space will be designated for a community serving non-profit, RISE Financial Pathways, which is dedicated to serving low-income clients by providing training that improves the financial standing of individuals, launches and sustains small businesses, and strengthens neighborhoods.

RISE Housing, LP owns the apartment community. Gardena, California-based Highridge Development Company, LLC, and SRO Housing Corporation of Los Angeles are the developers. The general contractor is Alpha Construction Company, Inc., of Van Nuys. The architectural firm is Egan Simon Architecture of Playa del Rey.

To finance the development, RISE Apartments has been awarded a preliminary reservation of four percent of Low Income Housing Tax Credits in the amount of $917,604 annually over a ten-year period from the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee (“CTCAC”) which is paired with $16.2MM in Tax Exempt Bonds from the California Debt Limit Allocation Committee (CDLAC).  In addition, RISE has received an award for $9,500,000 million in Proposition HHH funding and $2,500,000 of the City’s Low and Moderate Income Housing Fund (“LMIHF”) from the City of Los Angeles as well as a commitment for 42 VASH Project Based Vouchers and 14 Project Based Vouchers from the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA).

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"Everyone in our city deserves safe housing --- and we're going to keep accelerating our drive to get people off the streets and under a roof," said Mayor Eric Garcetti. "We are starting a new chapter in Expo Park, and I'm proud to that our community is coming together to provide homes, dignity, and a new start to Angelenos in desperate need."

"This is another giant step in the city's effort to eliminate homelessness and ensure our most vulnerable people have a shot at living a life of dignity and respect," said Councilman Curren D. Price, Jr., who represents Council District 9. "RISE Apartments offer hope, opportunities and new beginnings; and the fortunate individuals that will one day call RISE their home can and will prosper!  I wholeheartedly believe that Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) is the answer, which is why to date I've authorized the construction of nearly 500 PSH units in the Ninth District alone."

“We are grateful to the men and women who have bravely served our country, and consider it our duty to ensure veterans have access to decent affordable housing and supportive services,” Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas said. “I salute RISE Apartments for helping veterans rise out of homelessness.”

“The RISE Apartments is SRO Housing Corporation's first development outside of downtown Los Angeles and we could not have selected a better partner than Highridge Costa.  We are committed to addressing the dire affordable housing needs in Los Angeles and the RISE Apartments is just the beginning,” said Anita Nelson of SRO Housing.

"As a local nonprofit organization, RISE Financial Pathways is honored to be a part of the solution by providing affordable housing for our veterans and homeless living here in Los Angeles," said Forescee Hogan-Rowles, President & CEO, RISE Financial Pathways.

“Given the severe lack of housing for our homeless veterans, we at Highridge Costa take tremendous pride in our ability to create high quality, safe and affordable places to live for those who selflessly served our country. We feel very fortunate that our ‘work’ creates such good for so many lives,” said Michael Costa, President and CEO of Highridge Costa.

“We would like to thank all of the organizations and people who worked together, and the vital roles they played, to develop this affordable apartment community for the homeless, including our deserving veterans,” said Mohannad H. Mohanna, President of Highridge Costa, Development.

Hawaii Governor David Ige, other state and local officials, along with community leaders and members of the development team joined together recently to officially break ground on the $130 million Kulana Hale mixed-use and senior affordable apartment community.  

Located at 1020 Wakea Street in Kapolei on the island of Maui, the project consists of three components to be built in three phases located on a single three-acre block and includes two 13-story towers and single-story commercial space. Highridge Costa Companies of Gardena, California and Coastal Rim Properties of Honolulu, owned by Franco Mola, are developing Kulana Hale jointly. The project was designed by SVA Architects and is being built by Hawaiian Dredging Construction Company. 

 The $64 million first phase of the $130 million project will provide much-needed housing for seniors earning 60 percent or less of the area median income (AMI). The first tower in the new community will feature a total of 154 affordable apartment units, offering 22 studio apartments, 109 one-bedroom apartments, 22 two-bedroom apartments and a single one-bedroom manager’s unit. As all essential utilities will be paid by the owner residents will not be responsible for electricity and water costs.

Project amenities will include a community meeting room, picnic area, community workspace with high-speed internet access, and neighborhood-serving retail on the ground floor. All units will come equipped with an oven, stove, microwave and refrigerator. 

Phase I of Kulana Hale will feature exceptional energy efficiency in design and operations, including a rooftop photovoltaic array to reduce energy consumption and minimize the project’s carbon footprint. The project will be built to the LEED Platinum standard, representing the development team’s commitment to sustainable communities.  

The second phase will add a second tower with 143 affordable units for families as well as additional ground floor retail space and is anticipated to start construction in 2019.  The final phase will be comprised of single-story retail space to serve the residents and the larger community. 

The development will be financed with a combination of tax-exempt bonds, tax credit equity, and a $10.7 Million Rental Housing Revolving Fund Loan from the Hawaii Housing Finance and Development Corporation (HHFDC). Citibank will be the construction lender and Aegon will be the tax credit investor.

“My administration has been working hard to expand affordable rental housing options across the state for seniors and families who struggle to find homes they can afford. Kulana Hale is a great example of using state funding to attract private investment in our communities,” said Governor David Ige.

“For over 25 years Highridge Costa has been creating quality new affordable senior and family housing in partnership with states throughout the U.S., including Hawaii. We are very excited and proud to announce the groundbreaking of our newest affordable senior community, Kulana Hale in Kapolei, Hawaii, developed in partnership with Hawaii’s State Housing Agency. Kulana Hale will enrich the lives of many seniors living with low and very low incomes while being an asset that both the State of Hawaii and Highridge Costa will be proud of for many years to come,” said Michael Costa President and CEO of Highridge Costa Companies.

“On behalf of myself and the entire Highridge Costa team, I would like to thank the myriad of contributors who came together to make this affordable senior community a reality. Such achievements are only possible when individuals and organizations across the private and public sectors are motivated to bring real change and improvement to the communities in which they live and work,” said Mohannad H. Mohanna, President and Managing Member of Highridge Costa Development Company, LLC.