BUENA PARK, CA-The city council here has granted approval for a70-unit affordable apartment complex to be developed byIrvine-based affordable housing specialist Jamboree Housing Corp.The new complex will be developed on the two-acre site of along-vacant commercial building at 8850 La Palma Ave. that is ownedby the City of Buena Park Redevelopment Agency and will beearmarked for tenants earning between 30% and 60% of the county'sarea median income.

The fenced development site, which has been vacant for more thanfive years, required a general plan Amendment and rezoning fromcommercial to residential, which the city council also approved.The apartments, which will consist of units ranging from one tothree bedrooms and from approximately 616 square feet to 1,192square feet, will be marketed primarily to the city's workingfamilies. Construction is expected to start next year and to becompleted in 2012.

The building design utilizes a green roof over the 142-spaceinterior parking area, creating more than 20,000 square feet ofopen space. Michael Massie, Jamboree's housing development manager,points out that the green roof "will provide the residents withoutdoor opportunities that would not otherwise have been possiblein a tightly constrained urban area." The green roof will helpreduce the heat island that would otherwise be created by thesurface parking facility and helps improve the environment byreducing and filtering storm water runoff and by cutting down ongreenhouse gas from the site, Massie adds.