By Sara Beth Williams–
A project three years in the making will finally come to fruition as Habitat for Humanity Greater Sacramento, in partnership with the City of Citrus Heights, breaks ground on the first phase of a 26-home housing project on Sayonara Drive.
A groundbreaking ceremony for the first eight homes is scheduled for Monday, June 2, a little over three years after the first initial plans for the project were brought before the Planning Commission.
Related: City eyes partnership with nonprofit to build housing on Sayonara Drive—Citrus Heights Sentinel
Once described as the most dangerous street in the city, Sayonara Drive has two rows of vacant lots after the city purchased blighted buildings from absentee landlords and leveled them more than a decade ago. The project will fill the 12 vacant city-owned lots with 26 new single-family homes, which are to be owned, not rented. The project fulfills an obligation for housing that the city was initially required to meet within five years.
The new community will include 26 homes ranging from two to five bedrooms, all equipped with energy-efficient heating systems, low-flow plumbing fixtures, alarm systems, solar battery storage, rooftop solar, and drought-tolerant landscaping. The homes will also be EV-ready, supporting the region’s goals for sustainability and affordability.
Homes will be purchased by qualified buyers, and buyers will be required to contribute 500 hours of “sweat equity” during the course of construction.
Construction on the first eight homes in the Habitat for Humanity Sayonara project will begin this year, with estimated completion in 2026, the city said Thursday, adding that construction on eight additional homes is anticipated to begin in the fall of 2026, and construction on the remaining 10 homes should start in 2027.
Prior to the second and third phases of home construction, applications will open each time a new set of homes is planned. Applications typically open months prior to construction and will be shared on the city’s website and Habitat for Humanity of Greater Sacramento’s website.
Habitat for Humanity, which has brought multiple housing units to communities throughout the Sacramento region, has called the Sayonara housing project its largest development to date.
The groundbreaking ceremony will begin at 9 a.m. on Monday at 7795 Sayonara Drive.
