National City affordable housing development nears completion, set to open this summer

A new affordable housing development in National City is more than 90% complete and on track to open this summer, city officials say.

Union Tower Apartments, a 94-unit complex located at 2312 F Ave., broke ground June 28, 2024, and is expected to welcome its first residents in June 2026.

The complex consists of two buildings — four and seven stories tall — offering one-, two- and three-bedroom units to households earning between 30% and 60% of San Diego County’s Area Median Income. Twenty-four units are reserved for veterans who have experienced homelessness, five of which are designated for veterans with disabilities.

Angelita Palma, the city’s Housing Authority Community Development Manager, said the city is among the second-oldest municipalities in San Diego County and has one of the oldest housing stocks in the region. At just 9.2 square miles — with portions occupied by freeways and the Navy and port along the waterfront — developable land is scarce.

“To have this new development, this large-scale affordable housing, this new construction in the city, it’s a big deal,” Palma said.

The development is a partnership between the Community Development Commission-Housing Authority of the City of National City and Wakeland Housing and Development Corporation, a nonprofit affordable housing developer.

To finance the development, the city awarded Wakeland an $8 million loan through a Notice of Funding Availability issued in October 202...