Affordable apartments for seniors going up in Oxnard

A developer has recently started construction on 341 units of affordable senior housing in Oxnard near Highway 101.

Newport Beach-based Vintage Housing is building the units in two four-story structures at the corner of Outlet Center Drive and Lockwood Street near The Palms Marketplace shopping center.

Called Lockwood Senior Apartments, the units will be rented to seniors 55 and over and will be 100% affordable, said Joe Pearson II, Oxnard’s planning and environmental services manager.

The project will feature one- and two-bedroom apartments and be built on about 7 acres, city documents show.

The developer is also including a number of amenities including a swimming pool, dog area, community center, gym and coffee bar. A total of 362 parking spaces will be spread throughout the community, city documents show.

Oscar Madrigal, who represents District 3 where the site is located, said senior housing often gets overlooked but is needed in the city and region.

"None of us are getting any younger," Madrigal said. "Senior housing is very, very important."

It is unclear when the public can begin applying for the housing.

Mark Ross of Sun Village LLC submitted the project to the city on behalf of Sunbelt Enterprises LLC, city documents show. But Vintage Housing is the lead developer for the project, Ross said.

Vintage Housing officials didn't respond to emails and calls seeking comment on the project status.

All of the units will be designated as low-income, documents show, which is calculated based on a percentage of the area median income. In Ventura County, the median for a family of two is currently $98,800 , according to the California Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the limit for a couple to qualify for low-income housing is $85,000.

Pearson, of the city planning division, said the developer is also planning 234 more units near the Lockwood site, though those apartments will be leased at market rate. That project still needs to be approved by the Planning Commission, he said.

Brian J. Varela covers Oxnard, Port Hueneme and Camarillo. He can be reached at brian.varela@vcstar.com or 805-477-8014. You can also find him on Twitter @BrianVarela805 .

This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Affordable apartments for seniors going up in Oxnard