Santa Maria-style barbecue grills. A modern farmhouse design that pays homage to local agricultural roots. A brand new elementary school and shopping center just steps away.
These amenities and benefits come with living at Azure, a recently unveiled apartment rental community in Santa Maria that sits at the heart of the Enos Ranchos development and adjacent to the new William “Bill” Libbon Elementary School.
“We were really attracted to the agrarian roots of Santa Maria,” Craig Jones, president of Azure’s developer, MBK Rental Living, told the Sun. “We thought it was a good fit, and with a modern and warm neighborhood feel.”
Jones calls it a “lifestyle rental community.”
“What I mean by that is the homes feel like home,” Jones said. “You have an open floor plan, kitchen islands, and other residential qualities.”
The apartments also come with raised planter bed gardens where residents can plant vegetables; a pool; and an outdoor basketball court that give the development a community feel.
“The indoor and outdoor amenities provide—especially during the times of a pandemic—a safe, recreational opportunity for families and those looking to meet with their neighbors or find a peaceful retreat for themselves,” Jones said. “We really wanted to create a neighborhood where people could interact with each other and really feel like they had a lifestyle.”
With studios and one-, two-, and three-bedroom residences, the 318-unit development will have the capacity to house around 600 people once it’s completed. So far, 112 units are ready for occupancy. Jones said those are already nearly full, but more apartments will be ready for move-in come February. He encouraged anyone interested to head to liveatazure.com.
“You can actually go from A to Z on our website: from looking at the project all the way to signing a lease,” Jones said. “You can also stop by the community. We have a beautiful, welcoming leasing office with a team of people that are happy to help.”
Given California’s ever-present housing shortage, MBK Rental Living hopes that Azure can provide “much needed relief and relative affordability to other home and housing opportunities.”
“Our project, while it’s new and highly amenitized, provides an array of floor plans that are really designed with this in mind,” Jones said. “From studio units, where you can have an all-in affordable rent with a great lifestyle, to a three bedroom unit where you can accommodate your family and be across the street from a brand new elementary school.”
As far as new apartment developments go, Jones said Santa Maria doesn’t have an abundance of options.
“We would love to see more because, if I look at the market, average occupancy is above 95 percent,” Jones said. “That usually means that there’s a lack of supply.”
Given that need in the Santa Maria market, Jones said it’s a perfect opportunity to assist the city in providing housing.
“We think that Santa Maria is the destination of the future, so being able to provide housing in a market like Santa Maria is something that is really satisfying for us,” he said.
Highlights
• Mi Gente, Nuestra Salud, a new program “designed to combat systemic racism and advocate for health as a fundamental human right,” is kicking off with virtual events from Dec. 10 to 12 and a few in-person resource booths around Santa Maria on Dec. 12, according to Cal Poly’s Center for Health Research. The event will be held in both Spanish and English and will feature live and pre-recorded appearances from participating local elected officials, medical personnel, and representatives from the Latino, Indigenous, and farmworker communities. Virtual activities include “poetry, short films, and art to elevate the voices of minoritized groups,” according to the Center for Health Research. For a schedule of activities and links to the virtual event, visit migentenuestrasalud.org.
• The Workforce Development Board of Santa Barbara County offers financial assistance to qualifying workers and job seekers, as well as subsidization of training costs for qualified businesses, through its various workforce programs. In a Dec. 2 newsletter, the board wrote that qualified job seekers can receive financial assistance ranging from $400 to $800 to pay for rent, utility bills, and technology needed to telework. But anyone interested should act quickly, because the program ends Dec. 31. The board can also help businesses and employers subsidize the cost of training a new or existing worker in exchange for helping a COVID-19 laid-off worker get back on their feet. Find out more at sbcwdb.org.
Staff Writer Malea Martin wrote this week’s Spotlight. Send hot tips about businesses, nonprofits, and good samaritans to spotlight@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Dec 10-17, 2020.