It's a pretty safe bet that when we see new construction these days in the neighborhoods surrounding Temple, more student housing is on the way. So that was naturally our first and second guess when we spotted some new foundations and framing on 16th Street, just north of Norris.
But if you look carefully at the photo above, you'll see a sign that reveals the actual nature of this project.
Holy smokes, it's non-student-housing construction near Temple! Habitat for Humanity is building 21 units of affordable housing in a project they've dubbed Diamond Park. The first phase will mean 12 new homes on a large chunk of land between Page and Fontain Streets, with groundbreaking taking place last month. It appears as though all of the foundations have been poured, with two of the homes partially framed so far.
The second phase of this project will take place just to the north, on a large parcel at the northwest corner of 16th & Fontain. All of these lots were previously owned by City agencies or PHA.
Tha Habitat website shows renderings of the new homes, a few of which are already spoken for. As is the usual policy with Habitat for Humanity, all buyers are required to fulfill 350 "sweat equity" hours, building or repairing other Habitat homes and attending home ownership workshops.
Each of the homes will rise two stories and include 3 bedrooms and 1,150 sqft of living space. The first phase of the project is expected to wrap up by this time next year, though we wouldn't be surprised to see the homes finished more quickly.