Main Street in Milpitas is expected to gain 118 new affordable housing units.
The City Council unanimously approved the development Thursday and questioned the developer about the types of amenities that will be included.
Encino-based AMG & Associates LLC plans to build two apartment complexes on the .97 acre lot at 1300 S. Main Street, half a mile from the VTA Great Mall light rail station. More than half of the units will be reserved for low-income families, while the remainder will be for those with moderate incomes. Overall construction is expected to cost $18.4 million and include a community garden, a public space and 39 parking sports for tenants.
“This is going to be very nice and add lots of exciting moments to the Milpitas residents around Main Street, the Innovation district and the metro area,” Councilmember Hon Lien said during the meeting.
In Santa Clara County, the low-income threshold for a family of four is $137,100. In Milpitas, the median household income is $169,460, and roughly 64% of residents own their own home. The median gross rent is $2,762, according to the city.
The construction comes as many Bay Area cities begin enacting their housing element, a state-mandated blueprint for how they will add a specific number of homes at a range of price points. Milpitas must build 7,028 new housing units by 2031. The nine-county Bay Area is slated build more than 441,000 new homes by then to meet housing demands, a roughly 15% increase in the region’s total housing stock. The counties must also allocate roughly 40% of those homes for people with low or very-low incomes.
The project, submitted in 2021, is compliant with SB35, a state law that helps streamline affordable housing projects. The law prohibits cities from imposing restrictions on a 100% affordable project located within half a mile of transit services. In 2022, the city requested that AMG consider modifying the project to incorporate amenities including on-site parking, a community garden and an open space.
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“We’ve approved projects across the railroad and most of them have some either small park or something to serve the community,” Councilmember Garry Barbadillo said during the meeting.
Gene Broussard, who is overseeing the project for AMG, said staff did their best to add the 39 parking spaces on the small triangular piece of land.
“On other projects that are one acre and rectangle, we were able to squeeze in a lot more parking,” he said. “It’s just the site is unique. We did our best — we get pinched at the end of the triangle.”