Linc Housing and National CORE Open 340-Unit Pioneer Village Affordable Community in Glendale

Linc Housing and National CORE have completed Pioneer Village, a 340-apartment affordable housing community at 515 Pioneer Drive in Glendale, California, marking one of the city's largest income-restricted residential developments. The project drew more than 7,500 unique applications and serves low-income seniors and families earning between 30% and 80% of the Los Angeles County area median income.

The grand opening was celebrated with Glendale Mayor Ardy Kassakhian, city officials, public and private partners, and incoming residents. Construction began in January 2023 and was completed in July 2026, with residents beginning to move in during June.

Project Details and Design

Pioneer Village comprises three elevator-served, five-story buildings on a 2.79-acre site. The development includes 92 apartments reserved for seniors age 62 and older, 245 apartments for families, and three units for on-site property staff. The buildings are arranged around courtyards and open spaces connected by bridges, with a pedestrian paseo linking the property to nearby Fremont Park.

Each home includes air conditioning, electric heating, a patio or balcony, dishwasher, microwave, garbage disposal and all-electric appliances. The community offers more than 5,800 square feet of indoor community space, including community rooms, kitchens, computer labs and a gym, along with playgrounds, community gardens, outdoor courtyards with barbecue and picnic areas, rooftop decks and a walking path. The development is designed to meet LEED Gold standards from the U.S. Green Building Council. Parking includes 342 spaces in a two-level subterranean garage, with 35 electric-vehicle-ready stalls.

Architecture firm KFA designed Pioneer Village. National CORE served as the general contractor. HavenCORE is the property manager, and Linc Housing provides on-site resident services including healthy cooking and eating classes, exercise classes, social activities and supportive programming.

Pioneer Village is within walking distance of Fremont Park and the Glendale Beeline Route 5 stop at Doran and Pacific, and within one mile of the Glendale Central Library, Glendale Family Medical Center, grocery stores, restaurants and pharmacies.

Financing Structure

The development was financed through a layered capital stack combining public and private sources. Bank of America provided construction lending through multifamily housing revenue bond proceeds and arranged low-income housing tax credits. CalHFA contributed financing through its HUD Risk-Sharing Program and Mixed-Income Program. Additional public funding came from City of Glendale Measure S funds, Low and Moderate Income Housing Asset Funds and HOME Program funds.

"CalHFA is honored to help finance Pioneer Village through our Mixed-Income Program, and I particularly want to celebrate the collaboration that went into this development," said CalHFA Executive Director Tony Sertich. "We saw mission-driven private partners, the City of Glendale and various state government entities all working together with a common goal of providing seniors and families a safe and affordable place to call home."

The City of Glendale's involvement dates to 2019, when it acquired the former AT&T site. The city later authorized a $10 million appropriation and a letter of loan commitment for the project in 2021.

Developer and Partner Perspectives

"Pioneer Village brings seniors and families together in an intergenerational community, giving residents the opportunity to deepen their roots in Glendale and build more stable futures," said Suny Lay Chang, president and COO of Linc Housing. "That is the heart of Linc's work: creating homes where people feel secure, connected and part of a community. Pioneer Village was possible through extraordinary partnership among the City of Glendale, the Glendale Housing Authority, CalHFA, Bank of America and National CORE. We are deeply grateful to see that shared commitment become a place people can now call home."

Michael Ruane, president of National CORE, emphasized the efficiency gains of building at scale. "Pioneer Village shows why we need to build at a larger scale. Bringing 340 homes online through one coordinated development allows us to use land, infrastructure and financing more efficiently, so limited resources can help house more people," Ruane said. "Opening the doors is only the beginning. Affordable housing works best when it gives people a chance to build community, know their neighbors, connect to services and feel that they belong. This is not just a collection of apartments but a community where families and seniors can deepen their roots."

Mayor Kassakhian noted the city's long-term commitment to the site. "Pioneer Village is a fitting name because it really does take a village to make a project like this happen," he said. "The City saw an opportunity with this property years ago and made the decision to invest in affordable housing. Today, that investment has become 340 homes, and that is something worth celebrating."

Market Context and Demand

The depth of demand for Pioneer Village underscores the shortage of income-restricted housing in the Glendale market. More than 7,500 unique applications were submitted for the 340 apartments — roughly 22 applications per unit — after a waitlist opened in late November 2025 and closed in December.

Pioneer Village opens against a Southern California multifamily backdrop in which new supply has become increasingly difficult to deliver. The number of multifamily units under construction in Los Angeles stood at approximately 25,600 in the second quarter of 2026, down roughly 15% from a year earlier. Average asking rents in the broader Los Angeles market were approximately $2,310 per unit per month, with vacancy near 5.5%. Average investment cap rates moved to approximately 5.8%, up from 5.5% a year prior, reflecting higher return requirements in the conventional investment market.

For Pioneer Village, those market benchmarks are secondary to its public-service mandate. Its apartments are restricted to households earning no more than 80% of area median income, with a substantial share reserved for seniors and lower-income households — demand that market-rate construction does not directly address.

Linc Housing has developed more than 10,000 homes across 108 communities statewide over more than 40 years. National CORE, which describes itself as one of the largest affordable housing developers in the nation, earned an A+ credit rating from Standard & Poor's in 2021 and serves approximately 30,000 residents. Pioneer Village's intergenerational design — placing senior and family housing within a single community supported by shared amenities and on-site programming — reflects a strategy both organizations have pursued to maximize the social impact of individual developments.

Sources

PR Newswire: National CORE, Linc Housing and City of Glendale Celebrate Grand Opening of 340 Affordable Apartments for Seniors and Families