Photos: Downtown lofts with units starting at $310/month under construction

SAN ANTONIO – A new affordable housing project is transforming a five-point intersection in Museum Reach — a neighborhood already booming with high-end apartment buildings.

The Museum Reach Lofts is making headway at St. Mary’s Street and Jones Avenue near the San Antonio Museum of Art, and it is scheduled for completion late this year.

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Aerial photos show the construction of the development that will include 94 units, 86 of which would be dedicated to families earning between 30-80% of the area median income, according to Michael Shackelford, the director of policy for the Alamo Community Group, the nonprofit behind the development. Shackelford said that percentage translates to wages of $7.25-$15 an hour.

Rent for those units will range between $310 to $1,000 a month.

The remaining eight units will be set at the market rate, but the most expensive two-bedroom options would still only be $1,277, according to a past KSAT report.

The affordable housing may help paraprofessionals or those working in the service industry nearby, Shackelford said.

A learning center with a teacher and a computer lab will be on-site for community members and residents.

Alamo Community Group breaks ground on affordable housing project near SAMA

The development will be the area’s first affordable housing project, Assistant City Manager Lori Houston said at a May 2019 groundbreaking.

Because of that, Shackelford said the group has screened about 100 calls from prospective residents, asking about how they can apply to live there.

“We know in that area there’s a huge need for affordable housing,” he said. “When people hear about affordable housing in the downtown area... that has such a huge interest.”

Those interested can start applying at the leasing center once the complex is finished in November, he said.

The group has 10 other properties in Bexar County.