Affordable multifamily project planned in Canoga Park Opportunity Zone

An 80-unit affordable apartment building could replace a series of single-family homes and empty lots in Canoga Park.

A filing with the Department of City Planning calls for the project on an assemblage of seven lots at the corner of W. Hart Street and N. Owensmouth Avenue. An individual named Constance Boukidis owns the 32,000-square-foot assemblage.

All of the units would be affordable and the project is within a federal Opportunity Zone, although it’s not clear if the developer is taking advantage of the program.

The Opportunity Zone program was created as part of the Trump Administration’s December 2017 tax overhaul and allows investors to greatly reduce capital-gains taxes and even avoid those taxes altogether.

A number of funds specializing in Opportunity Zone projects have cropped up around the country, including in Los Angeles. Many haven’t entirely worked out the exact mechanics of the program, but are buying up eligible properties anyway.

Last week, Skya Ventures filed plans for a 92-unit project in an East Hollywood Opportunity Zone.

Either way, the Canoga Park site is primed for multifamily development. It’s a few blocks from the Westfield Topanga mall and Warner Center. The city rezoned the Warner Center neighborhood to encourage more multifamily development with the hopes of creating a walkable downtown area in the San Fernando Valley.

Developers and investors are steadily scooping up properties there. The neighborhood is slated to get 24,000 new residential units by the year 2033.