RAAM Construction, a general building construction firm specializing in multifamily and historic preservation projects throughout California, has completed the construction of an affordable senior housing development in La Puente, California for $29 million.
The 71,499 square-foot property, Arboleda Apartments, consists of 74 apartment units in two conjoined four-story wood-frame buildings in La Puente, a low-income area where budget-friendly housing for seniors is scarce, according to Richard Lara, President and CEO of RAAM Construction.
“The need for affordable housing has grown in recent years due to rising home prices and an overall housing shortage, and the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated that need immensely,” says Lara. “La Puente is a city with strong demand for affordable rentable units, and Arboleda Apartments will greatly serve the local community by providing brand-new residential units for seniors who could not otherwise afford housing in the area.”
RAAM worked closely with Meta Housing Corporation, a developer of affordable housing communities for families and seniors, along with AMJ Construction Management Inc. and Y&M Architects, to deliver the new residences for qualified low-income seniors in the La Puente market.
“This project demonstrates once again that we are committed, along with our long-time partner Meta Housing, to meeting existing and projected housing needs throughout California in both the short and long term,” says Lara.
As construction costs continue to increase throughout the country, maintaining strong partnerships is of the utmost importance, Lara explains.
“We have worked with Meta Housing on 254 units over the last several years,” says Lara. “Because of this, we have a deep understanding of their needs and are able to work closely with their team to come up with innovative solutions to keep projects on budget and on time. This is especially important during times like right now where supply shortages and lumber prices are continuing to increase.”
Meta Housing worked closely with RAAM Construction to determine a realistic budget that was aligned with the project’s design goals and to deliver a project that truly fit the needs of the local community.
“We act as a true partner to our clients, which in turn helps to reduce any delays in construction starts and throughout the construction process,” explains Lara. “This ultimately saves developers time and money over the long term as projects stay on schedule and are completed timely. We kept construction going throughout the pandemic and worked closely with Meta to deliver this quality community for residents.”
Arboleda Apartments contains 59 one-bedroom apartments and 15 two-bedroom apartments with balconies attached to some of the units. The apartments, which replace four detached family homes on the site, feature Mission-style architecture with white stucco and red roof tiles, as well as numerous ornamental elements such as awnings, a central courtyard, and stucco columns joined by wrought-iron. Common-area amenities for residents include two manager’s offices, a community room, second-floor sky deck, library, second-floor laundry room, fitness center, and tech/computer room.
In further efforts to help the senior residents of this development, 38 apartments are fully ADA-accessible units and seven apartments are equipped with hearing and visual impaired life safety devices. A total of 50 percent of the apartments are fully accessible units and 4 percent are for the hearing and visually impaired.
The newly built apartments are situated in close proximity to two Northgate Markets; CVS; restaurants including El Sushi Loco Sushi and Mariscos La Puente, In-N-Out Burger, and Little Caesar’s Pizza; schools including Fairgrove Academy and Valinda School of Academics; Chase Bank; Allen J. Martin Park; and La Puente Handball Club.
Arboleda Apartments is located at 1040 North Unruh Avenue in La Puente, California.
