Affirmed Housing Pitches Affordable Housing in San Jose

Affirmed Housing Group is looking to add its fourth affordable project in San Jose next door to the BART station on the city’s north side, one that would be built taller than a traditional affordable complex.

The for-profit affordable residential developer filed plans with the city this week for a 195-unit project that would take up about a third of the roughly 3-acre vacant lot at 1565 Mabury Road. San Diego-based Affirmed is working with the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, colloquially known as VTA and the parcel’s owner, on its plans.

The project consists of a 10-story building with all but two of its units affordable to those making between 30 and 60 percent of the area median income, or between $59,000 and $92,250 a year, according to the latest California Department of Housing and Community Development data.

The structure’s first floor would be a parking garage with 48 spaces for cars, which seems insufficient compared with the number of planned homes until you remember its location next to BART and the existing parking garage next door.

The VTA selected the company at its board meeting in April but hasn’t chosen developers for the market-rate residential and office projects it envisions next to Affirmed’s project, part of its long-term plan to turn three acres of undeveloped land into a dense transit-oriented development. The authority acquired the site from a real estate investment fund for an undisclosed amount in 2012, according to title service records.

Affirmed’s proposal is under review by city planners, but isn’t considered a formal one; rather, it’s mainly intended to provide the developer with an early analysis of how city codes and policies apply to its project. It asked the city in its plans if the project complies with SB 35 and AB 1763, two bills recently signed into state law that allows affordable housing to be built denser and taller, while also streamlining development timelines.

To qualify for AB 1763, a development must set aside all of its homes as affordable for lower-income households and be within half a mile of a major transit stop. Affirmed’s proposal checks both boxes.

The developer also wants to know if all the parking spaces in its BART-adjacent project can be offsite, its plans show.

An Affirmed representative didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. The company’s proposal doesn’t include cost estimates or a construction timeline, but it will likely be about two years before the project breaks ground, assuming the city approves it.

The VTA plans to host two more community meetings on Affirmed’s proposal in January and March before the latter files a formal development application in May. Affirmed anticipates wrapping up construction in November 2026, according to a development timeline the project team shared with the community in September.