Affordable townhouses coming to Pleasant Hill with Habitat for Humanity deal

PLEASANT HILL — Habitat for Humanity will build seven townhouses near downtown Pleasant Hill after purchasing a plot of land from the city for just $10.

The city last month approved a deal that would transfer a nearly 11,000 square-foot parcel of land at 250 Cleaveland Road to Habitat for Humanity to build townhouses for low- and moderate-income families earning a maximum of 120 percent of the area’s median income at the time the homes are complete.

The city also agreed to give Habitat a $400,000 loan to assist in the development of the project, which is estimated to cost about $5 million total, according to city documents. The loan will come from the city’s fund earmarked for affordable housing development.

Habitat plans to build seven townhouses in three-story buildings on the parcel, and a letter of interest from the housing developer says it will be similar to Habitat’s Central Commons project in Fremont — a collection of 30 condos.

Habitat requires each family to put in a certain amount of hours of work in building the homes they buy.

The parcel had been bought by the former Pleasant Hill Redevelopment Agency in 1985 and until 2005 had a single-family home on the property. The home was demolished in 2005, and the property is now vacant and designated for multi-family medium density land use.

Since the parcel was put on the market by the city in November 2017, it received two offers besides Habitat’s ranging from $100,000 to $251,000 to buy the land and build market-rate housing, but the city ultimately voted for the Habitat transfer, which was approved by the county oversight board — a requirement for some land formerly owned by the now-defunct redevelopment agencies.

“The development of affordable housing units will address the statewide housing affordability crisis and provide much needed affordable housing to the population served by all affected taxing agencies,” city documents sent to the county board say. “Donating 250 Cleaveland Road to Habitat and providing a forgivable loan from the City will leverage public assets to provide long-term benefits to the community, whereas selling the property would provide a one-time influx of cash that is divided among 16 taxing agencies”.