Cruz Development Corp. and its not-for-profit partner Housing Initiative Partnership have announced plans to build Branchville Crossing, a 51-unit affordable housing community in College Park, Md. Construction is scheduled to begin in early 2024.
The fully affordable community will serve residents earning 30 percent or less of the area median income. Fifteen units will welcome residents earning 60 percent of the area median income, while five units will be reserved for tenants with accessibility or sensory adaptation issues. Housing Initiative Partnership and Cruz Management will provide resident services.
Designed by Soto Architecture & Urban Design to achieve a LEED Gold rating and Zero Energy Ready Homes certification, the development will feature highly sustainable building systems and materials.
The four-story building will incorporate one-, two- and three-bedroom floorplans. Common-area amenities are set to include a community room, outdoor lounge areas, laundry facilities and approximately 83 parking spaces.
The transit-oriented development will rise at 4810 Branchville Road, in an Opportunity Zone. The site is near Route 1, which provides easy access to downtown Washington D.C. The community is within walking distance of the Purple Line corridor and several bus stops.
Tough decisions to preserve affordability
Cruz Development first proposed the Branchville Crossing project in 2020 as an 80-unit, seven-story affordable apartment building with 130 parking spaces, financed with bonds from the State Department of Housing and Community Development.
Cruz Development Corp. President & CEO John B. Cruz III shared in a recent interview with Multi-Housing News that the financing for the development was lost. The company had to choose between keeping the project at 80 units and turning it into a market-rate development or preserving the affordability but bring the development down by 30 units.
In June, Cruz Development Corp. closed on the acquisition of St. Mary’s Home for Children, a 19th century building in New Bedford, Mass. Plans calls for converting the historic property into an affordable housing community.
