Housing projects in SLO County hope to alleviate housing crisis

Hundreds of families in San Luis Obispo County are one step closer to affordable housing. Several projects are underway in SLO, including a mixed-use development project at San Luis Ranch.

“These will be the multi-family homes,” explained Cate Norton of Coastal Community Builders, the company behind the San Luis Ranch project. “It’s a farm to table community with 580 homes.”

“I think it’s everybody’s hope that it can help with our housing situation,” said Housing Authority of San Luis Obispo (HASLO) Executive Director, Scott Smith. “[We have] a housing shortage…and lack of affordable housing.”

Hundreds of trees near Madonna Road are currently being torn down to make room.

“That is for the multi-family group of housing. We will have affordable housing on site,” said Norton.

Project leaders said they should be done clearing the trees by the end of the week, and expect to begin housing construction by the end of 2019.

Norton added that Coastal Community Builders is well aware of concerns regarding the cutting down of hundreds of trees.

“The city has identified some trees that were dead, dying, or just in need of pruning.”

The company says it will also re-plant hundreds of trees.

“We will have 700 native trees, and then 700 willows,” Norton said.

The development at San Luis Ranch also includes a 200-room hotel and 150,000 square feet of commercial space.

Norton said they’re hoping to be done with the entire project by 2025.

At the county level, other developments are underway.

“We have several hundred housing units that are either in construction right now, or going to start construction within the next year,” said Smith.

HASLO says affordable units are in high demand.

“The latest property we opened just a few months ago, we had over 1,000 applications for 46 apartments,” Smith shared.

Smith added that other projects are kicking off in Arroyo Grande and other parts of South SLO County in 2019.