The market continues to grow, right? And as we’re growing, it’s become less and less affordable.
EDINBURG — The waiting list has already stacked up for residents who are hoping to move into the first public housing project to get under construction here in more than four decades.
That’s according to Edinburg Housing Authority leaders, who — along with other city leaders — gathered at the La Posada apartments off Sugar Road on Thursday morning to officially break ground on the much-anticipated apartment building.
“This is an opportunity for those residents that need a helping hand to find a place to live secure and safe,” Edinburg Mayor Ramiro Garza Jr. said shortly after the ceremony.
The new housing project will consist of a three-story building with 36 one-bedroom and efficiency apartments.
The entire structure will be wheelchair accessible and ADA compliant, and will be built beside the single-story units that currently exist at the site, according to Dr. Martin Castillo Jr., executive director of the Edinburg Housing Authority.
Named La Posada II, the project will be the first new public housing to be built in Edinburg since 1982.
In the four decades since, the city’s population has ballooned more than 330% — from about 24,000 in 1980 to more than 104,000 today, according to figures from the U.S. Census Bureau.
“There’s clearly a need for additional housing,” Castillo said.
The mayor agreed, citing how the explosive population growth has put stress on the housing industry.
“The market continues to grow, right? And as we’re growing, it’s become less and less affordable,” Garza said.
Named La Posada II, the project will be the first new public housing to be built in Edinburg since 1982. In the four decades since, the city’s population has ballooned more than 330% — from about 24,000 in 1980 to more than 104,000 today, according to figures from the U.S. Census Bureau.
And though the turning over of earth with golden shovels was purely a ceremonial demonstration Thursday, there’s already a lengthy list of people anxious to see construction get underway in earnest.
Some 800 people are hoping to win the proverbial lottery by securing a spot in one of the city’s public housing units.
About half of those are smaller households searching for one-bedroom accommodations, Castillo said.
The $5 million project will take about one year to build and is being funded via the housing authority’s capital funds, as well as the proceeds from the sale of another public housing site located across town.
That will allow the project to be completed debt free, Castillo said.
Officials had originally hoped La Posada II would include more than 36 units, but several factors hindered those plans.
First, it took two years for the EHA to gain approval from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which regulates public housing.
But just as the Edinburg Housing Authority got that approval, the nation was beset by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We were intending to do more units, but of course, COVID, cost of inflation of materials, that would not be possible for us,” Castillo said. “We would love to, but we can’t.”
Nonetheless, both he and Mayor Garza were optimistic that La Posada II will be just the first in new affordable housing developments.
“I know the importance of it,” Garza said, adding that he is himself a product of public housing.
As a child, Garza lived in such housing in Port Isabel.
“I grew up in public housing from when I was born to when I was 8, 9 years old. But I never knew it was public housing until later, because there’s not anything that I ever needed,” Garza said.
Ultimately, that housing served as the launching pad his parents needed on their path toward home ownership.
“At one point or another, you need a helping hand to transition to hopefully getting your own home,” the mayor said.
