UMOM opens La Esperanza Terrace, 96 affordable rental units in Phoenix
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Summary
UMOM New Day Centers and partners celebrated the grand opening of La Esperanza Terrace, a 96-unit affordable housing development on surplus Isaac School District land funded by city, county, state and federal sources and intended for families at or below 60% of area median income.
UMOM New Day Centers and public and private partners marked the grand opening of La Esperanza Terrace, a 96-unit affordable rental community in Phoenix, at a morning ceremony on site.
Jackson (founder and CEO of UMOM New Day Centers) opened the event, saying, "La Esperanza means hope, and that's exactly what this place represents. Hope for families, hope for kiddos, hope for the future of this entire neighborhood." He and other speakers described the development as housing and supportive services for families transitioning from homelessness and for low-income households.
The project was presented as a multiagency partnership that used surplus land owned by the Isaac School District. "This is an innovative new model where we can take land that school districts do not need and put it to use, including for affordable housing," Mayor Kate Gallego said, adding that the city, Maricopa County and the state provided funding.
Why it matters: speakers framed La Esperanza Terrace as both a new supply of affordable housing and a model for converting unused public land to housing. Patricia Jimenez, president of the Isaac School District governing board, said the development provides "96 affordable rentals — units for families earning or below 60% of the area medium income," and described the project as a response to declining enrollment and rising housing costs in the district.
Funding and partnerships: several presenters described a layered financing approach. Maricopa County Supervisor Steve Gallardo said, "$6,000,000 of ARPA dollars [were] coming in here to create this project." Ruby Dylan Williams, interim director at the Arizona Department of Housing, cited the state's housing trust fund and state-level investments as part of the capital stack. Speakers from the Phoenix Industrial Development Authority (Phoenix IDA), private lenders and tax-credit investors also credited tax-credit equity and construction/permanent financing from Redstone and a Raymond James tax-credit investor (American Express) for closing the deal.
Scale and continuity: Titus Matthew, director of the City of Phoenix Housing Department, noted UMOM has been a City partner for years and described this as one of multiple projects in their partnership; he said the partnership has delivered projects over time and mentioned roughly 800 units created in cooperation with UMOM. Juan Salgado, CEO of the Phoenix IDA, said the IDA is using the model with other districts and that the city has additional projects in the pipeline.
Local school-district context: Isaac School District interim superintendent Lily Mesalema said the site was the former location of a preschool and emphasized the district's interest in keeping families close to schools and supports. Speakers stressed that retaining students and stabilizing families were important aims alongside increasing housing stock.
Event close and next steps: organizers completed remarks with acknowledgments of architects, builders and community partners and moved to a ceremonial ribbon cutting, followed by refreshments and guided tours of the property.
No formal votes or policy actions were recorded at the ceremony; speakers described funding commitments and partnerships but did not indicate new legislative or regulatory approvals were taken at the event.
