Port Hueneme purchased for $600,000 a parcel the city plans to develop eventually into low-income housing.
The Port Hueneme City Council, acting as the Port Hueneme Housing Successor Agency Board, unanimously approved the expense at its July 20 meeting. The property at 237 E. Hueneme Road is approximately 11,000 square feet and sits between the Port Hueneme Historical Museum and two vacant lots also owned by the city.
According to the city’s 2025 Annual General Plan and Housing Progress Report, Port Hueneme must still add 26 units for residents making less than 50% of the area median income by 2029 to fulfill its housing element. The report also states that the city has built 19 units for low-income residents since 2021.
Gabby Basua, the city’s housing and facilities maintenance director, emphasized that the city is “landlocked,” meaning it lacks room to expand outward, as a key difficulty in building more housing. She said that the city plans to combine and then develop the newly purchased lot with two adjacent city-owned lots.
At the July 20 meeting, Basua said the combined property forms about 0.6 of an acre and hopefully accommodates 15 to 20 units.
Cities with Housing Successor Agencies were tasked with “winding down” redevelopment agencies after they were dissolved in 2012. As part of their responsibilities, successor agencies oversee the distribution of redevelopment agency funds.
Successor agency funds were used to purchase the Hueneme Road property, leaving $5.4 million in the agency’s account.
What’s next for the Hueneme Road site?
The purchase is an early step toward building affordable housing and not a commitment to any particular project. Basua said that the city intends to pursue a mixed-use development, as outlined in its general plan, possibly consisting of residential units above retail on the ground floor.
There is currently a single-story office building on the newly purchased parcel that Basua said the city plans to demolish.
Once the purchase is finalized, Basua said the project will go through California Environmental Quality Act review. Meanwhile, the city will look into state density bonuses, allowing the development to bypass particular zoning requirements for height limits or parking spaces, for example, if it includes a certain amount of affordable housing.
From there, Basua said city officials will report back to the successor agency and look for organizations to partner with on the project.
Levi Kauffman is a summer intern for the Ventura County Star. He can be reached at lkauffman@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Ventura County Star: Port Hueneme buys $600K parcel toward affordable housing
Reporting by Levi Kauffman, Ventura County Star / Ventura County Star
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By Levi Kauffman, Ventura County Star | USA TODAY Network
