October 14, 2025
Groundbreaking Commemorates Start of Construction for Affordable Apartments in San Ysidro for Families with Low Income
The San Diego Housing Commission awarded a loan to support the Avanzando San Ysidro development.
SAN DIEGO, CA — Community leaders and neighbors in San Ysidro gathered to celebrate the start of construction of 101 new affordable rental apartments for San Diegans with low income at Avanzando San Ysidro, a development in collaboration with the San Diego Housing Commission (SDHC) that held its groundbreaking today.
“Projects like this one are about how we are working to make San Diego a city of belonging,” San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria said. “I worry a lot about how hard people work in our City of San Diego, but who don’t feel like there’s a place for them here. This project that we’re a part of today—this is a history-making day—is a message to the people of this community that if you work hard, play by the rules, we want you to be here. We will make space for you here. We will fight and go find the funding to keep you here.”
Located on two properties less than a half mile apart in San Ysidro, Avanzando is being built by the development team of Hitzke Development Corporation and Casa Familiar. Using a combination of federal, state and local funding, they will transform land parcels owned by Casa Familiar into a transit-oriented community with a focus on sustainability that will also bring infrastructure improvements to nearby streets and public transit centers.
“This development is connected to Casa Familiar’s La Semilla Climate Resiliency Center, forming a hub for sustainable living less than a quarter mile or about a five-minute walk away. All buildings are designed to meet green building standards, ensuring environmental energy and health benefits,” said County Supervisor Paloma Aguirre, who represents San Ysidro. “Its transit-oriented, community-center design meets the real needs of multigenerational households while promoting long-term environmental stewardship.”
The rental apartments at Avanzando San Ysidro will remain affordable for 55 years for households with income up to 60 percent of San Diego’s Area Median Income (AMI), currently $99,240 for a family of four. Some units are set aside for families with extremely low incomes of 30 percent of AMI, or approximately $49,600 for a family of four. Avanzando will also include two managers’ units.
“This neighborhood has weathered challenges while maintaining its deep sense of identity, family and community pride,” said Maurice Lyles, Southern California Regional Director of External Affairs for Governor Gavin Newsom. “But San Ysidro has also carried a disproportionate share of housing insecurity, long commutes and economic stress. But today we are here, we are changing that story. This project represents the kind of bold, community-driven investment that Governor Newsom believes in—housing that doesn’t just provide roofs, but builds on futures.”
SDHC awarded a $4.12 million loan to support the development of Avanzando San Ysidro. SDHC’s loan consists of federal and local funds that SDHC administers, including:
- $3 million in HOME Investment Partnerships Program funds that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development awards to the City of San Diego.
- $1.12 million from the City of San Diego’s Affordable Housing Fund.
SDHC will also administer more than $6 million that the State of California’s Department of Housing and Community Development’s (HCD) that were directed toward Avanzado through the Infill Infrastructure Grant Program – Catalytic Qualifying Infill Area (Catalytic).
“The name ‘Avanzando’ translates roughly to ‘progress’ or ‘moving forward,’ and that’s why we’re here today—to celebrate the progress made as this affordable housing development moves forward and reaches a major milestone,” SDHC Senior Vice President of Real Estate Development Colin Miller said. “We believe that a stable, affordable home can be a catalyst for residents to achieve their educational, professional and personal goals.”
Additional funding from the State of California’s Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities (AHSC) program will also support the Avanzando development.
“Catalytic helps build the backbone of housing – the roads, the sidewalks, and the utilities – while AHSC, in partnership with our wonderful partners at the Strategic Growth Council and of the California Air Resources Board, connect housing goals to transit and also our climate goals,” said HCD Section Chief Lynn Jones of the Climate Investments Branch. “So, thanks to HCD, this project will also benefit from nine new bus shelters and increased blue line light rail frequency, bike lane upgrades and also some improvements, all helping residents reimagine how they move through their community.”
“It is a partnership from the state level all the way down to community. And again, this is what we’re excited to see at the Strategic Growth Council, to continue to have all these community investments take place, so that our people can thrive across the state. And we’re seeing it right here in San Ysidro,” said Amar Azucena Cid, Deputy Director of Community Investments and Planning for the California Strategic Growth Council.
The California Housing Finance Agency (CalHFA) issued $50 million in tax-exempt multifamily housing revenue bonds, including $1 million in recycled bonds, as well as more than $13.4 million in taxable bonds for a total bond issuance of more than $63.47 million.
The development is also being funded through $43.41 million in Federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Equity.
“We have accomplished this incredible moment hand in hand with all of you—with the San Ysidro community, Casa Familiar and their incredible team, government partners and cheerleaders, financiers, and so many more individuals,” said Casa Familiar Board Chair Anita Dharapuram. “From one spark of an idea to donation of land, to application after application, to community involvement, to renderings by the architects, to financing, plus I don’t even know how many more countless steps, we are here to break ground.”
The property will be owned by a community land trust, and the developer is exploring the potential of converting the rental units into homeownership after the tax credit and HOME funding compliance terms expire, no less than 20 years.
“I wanted to develop a multifamily building that is financially engineered in such a way that real, true, genuine spendable equity is generated for the low-income households that occupy it. And I don’t mean a little bit of equity, I mean the initial type of equity that has the ability to create generational wealth,” said developer Ginger Hitzke, the President of Hitzke Development Corporation.
Avanzando San Ysidro is near the Beyer Boulevard Trolley Station and additional public transportation options, as well as shopping areas, schools and parks and recreational centers.
Connect with SDHC on social media:
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Media Contact:
Scott Marshall,
Vice President of Communications
San Diego Housing Commission
619-578-7138
scottm@sdhc.org
