An affordable, multi-family development project at The Dunes is in motion.

USA Properties Fund, Inc. is expected to close this week on 6.47 acres it is acquiring from Monterey Community Partners and where the developer will build affordable, multi-family units. Once completed, they will be available for rent for low – and very low-income tenants.

USA Properties Fund, based in Roseville, specializes in affordable housing. The company manages 90 affordable communities, with over 12,000 units across California and Nevada. “This is a huge project and is a milestone because, in our 40-year history, this will be our first project in Monterey County,” says Jatin Malhotra, vice president of acquisitions at USA Properties Fund. “This area is in need of affordable housing,” he adds.

USA Properties Fund acquired the land – which last year was valued at over $6.2 million – for $100 from Marina Community Partners, the company behind new housing and commercial projects known as The Dunes on the former Fort Ord.

In total, the project will include 142 units to be built be at two different sites. The first property, with 93 units, will be at 4th Avenue and Imjin Parkway. The second site, with 49 apartments, will be located at 2nd Avenue and 5th Street.

These units are part of Phase 3 of The Dunes, a massive project originally approved by Marina City Council in 2005 transforming parts of the former Fort Ord. The project, which calls for 1,237 homes on 330 acres, includes affordable housing requirements.

“We are creating a community here,” says Don Hofer, a vice president with Marina Community Partners, “taking blighted, contaminated army relics and creating new places.”