At the August 8, 2023 meeting of the San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors, the board unanimously approved a one-time $1.5 million allocation to Visionary Home Builders as part of a multi-agency funding effort for a new 94-unit affordable housing development in downtown Stockton. The vote committed county dollars to a project whose full cost, according to the county's own announcement, ran to $60,518,336 — funded through the State of California Housing and Community Development Department, the Infill Infrastructure Grant Program, the City HOME Investment Partnerships Program, a City Impact Fee Waiver, and state tax credits.
The county's contribution was not simply spent — it was leveraged. The Board's own account of the vote states that the county's $1.5 million was used to secure $34 million in state tax credits for construction of the building, a common but underexamined mechanic in affordable housing finance: a relatively modest local allocation unlocking a far larger pool of state money.
Project at a Glance
- Name: La Passeggiata, 622 East Lindsey Street, downtown Stockton
- Units: 94 total — a five-story building with 39 one- and two-bedroom apartments, and a six-story building with 55 two- and three-bedroom apartments
- Total project cost: $60,518,336
- County contribution: $1.5 million, approved August 8, 2023, leveraged to secure $34 million in state tax credits
- Developer: Visionary Home Builders of California
- Groundbreaking: June 26, 2025
- Targeted completion: 2026, per the county's 2023 announcement
Note: The county-funding details and the state-groundbreaking details come from two separate records. DFP believes they describe the same development based on matching unit count, developer, and location, but no single source confirms they are the same project.
At the time of the county vote, Board Chair Robert Rickman framed the funding as part of a broader regional obligation. "Short and long-term solutions for affordable housing are complex, multi-faceted, and will take the commitment of government, community-based organizations, and the private sector," said Robert Rickman, Chair of the San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors.
What the Building Is Meant to Be
The development is designed as an integrational project — housing seniors in one section and families in another, on the same site. Dignity Health committed to providing services to residents with health issues, and a Head Start facility is planned to provide early education for children ages 3 to 5. According to the county's August 2023 announcement, all project funding was expected to be secured by the end of 2023, with construction projected to begin in May 2024 and the project expected to be completed in 2026.
The State Groundbreaking
Nearly two years after the county's funding vote, state leaders broke ground on a 94-unit project named La Passeggiata on June 26, 2025. The site is one of nearly 50 state-owned sites converted to affordable housing under an executive order signed by Governor Gavin Newsom, administered jointly by the California Department of General Services and the California Department of Housing and Community Development. The community is being developed by Visionary Home Builders of California — the same developer named in the county's 2023 announcement.
Neither the county's 2023 announcement nor the state's 2025 groundbreaking announcement explicitly states that they describe the same development. DFP is drawing that connection from the two records' matching details: an identical unit count (94), the same developer (Visionary Home Builders of California), and the same location in downtown Stockton. Public records reviewed by DFP indicate this is likely the same project, though no single source confirms the link outright.
"Once again, the Excess Sites program is helping transform state-owned land into something more: hope and stability for our state's residents. California continues to lead by example in addressing the nation's affordable housing crisis."
The quote is attributed to Governor Gavin Newsom in the state's official announcement of the groundbreaking.
Why the Funding Trail Matters
The path from a $1.5 million county line item to a $60.5 million building illustrates how affordable housing gets built in San Joaquin County today: not through a single funder, but through a stack of local, state, and tax-credit financing that has to be assembled and sequenced correctly, often over years, before a single unit is occupied. The gap between the county's 2023 target for a 2026 completion and the state's 2025 groundbreaking date shows how these timelines slip even on projects with committed public money.
Dismal Freedom Press will continue to follow La Passeggiata's construction and occupancy timeline, along with other affordable housing developments across San Joaquin County. If you live near the project site, work for one of the agencies involved, or have documents relevant to its financing or construction, we want to hear from you.