The first phase of construction has begun on the Avila Ranch project which will bring hundreds of new homes to the south end of San Luis Obispo.
If you drive through the area, you'll see that some homes are already being built. Progress has also been made on extending Buckley Road all the way to South Higuera Street.
"Avila Ranch is a big part of our inventory of new housing for the city and it includes affordable housing as well as market-rate units," said Michael Codron, Community Development Director for the City of San Luis Obispo.
The city's planning department said that 28 building permits have already been issued, including permits for model homes.
Another 22 building permits are ready to be issued when the builder is ready to move forward.
When all is said and done, there will be 720 new homes mixed with commercial space, parks, and greenways on the southern edge of the city.
"Most of the construction will be staged within the neighborhood so people in adjacent neighborhoods won't really be impacted by construction," said Codron. "There will be some truck traffic, but there won't be all the impacts of developing in an existing neighborhood or in an existing area of town."
To accommodate the new subdivision, the city is extending Buckley Road to South Higuera Street.
This is all part of a plan to improve traffic circulation on the south end of the city.
The goal is to build more east-west connections between Broad Street and South Higuera.
Right now, there is no exact timeline on when the Buckley Road extension will be complete.
The city plans to eventually extend Prado Road from Higuera all the way to Broad Street.
