As we first reported in early 2010, the one acre field bounded by Capitol Avenue, Sagamore, Alemany Boulevard and I-280 was acquired from Caltrans as a surplus right-of-way purchase and rezoned from Public Use (P) to Residential (RH-2).
With 28 new homes designed by MacDonald Architects having been proposed for the site, it’s a plugged-in tipster that reports Habitat for Humanity has purchased the land, the first new project for Habitat since redevelopment agencies were eliminated.
∙ One Capitol Avenue Address, Twenty Eight Dwellings As Proposed [SocketSite]
Completely support the goals of Habitat, but can someone explain, with all the shadow inventory, foreclosures, etc. why they are using their resources to build more housing? Why not improve and/or repurpose existing housing stock?
It’s probably more efficient for them to design & build out a single site with multiple units than to custom-rehab many disparate buildings with unknown code/structural problems. Besides design & building efficiency, the approval process alone would be greatly streamlined for one new project vs many rehabs.