New construction will bring affordable apartments to North Topeka. Here's what we know.

Keishera Lately, Topeka Capital-Journal
·3 min read
3

Affordable housing units will soon be under construction in North Topeka.

Marsha Pope, president of the Topeka Community Foundation, said Topeka has a housing need across the city.

"This is affordable housing strategically located in North Topeka that will meet the needs of people transitioning from the rescue mission, people connected to Breakthrough House and Valeo," Pope told The Capital-Journal.

Reden Jalosjos, owner of Reden Construction and Property Management, will be the landlord of the new apartments, saying he saw the need for people to be able to find housing.

The housing complex will have 25 affordable units at 117 N.E. US-24 highway.

Foundation is poured for a new affordable housing complex at 117 N.E. US-24 highway by Reden Construction and Property Management.
Foundation is poured for a new affordable housing complex at 117 N.E. US-24 highway by Reden Construction and Property Management.

Why is new affordable housing being built?

"This one is brand new. Even though this is small, we follow what the city regulation is," Jalosjos said. "So, it took us eight months to make sure that the people are protected and properties around me are protected.

In May 2022, The Capital-Journal reported the city council voted 10-0 to rezone 117 N.E. US-24 from commercial property to residential, clearing the way for Jalosjos and his wife, Dina, to build housing.

While the council voted unanimously to approve the zoning change, several were concerned about parking availability.

How will the affordable housing work?

Jalosjos said the complex will be faith-based management.

"What we are showing you is maybe when we give you kindness and forgiveness and compassion, maybe you will know who our God is," he said.

Reden and Dina Jalosjos, owners of Reden Construction and Property Management, hope to offer more affordable housing to Topekans through new apartments at 117 N.E. US-24 highway.
Reden and Dina Jalosjos, owners of Reden Construction and Property Management, hope to offer more affordable housing to Topekans through new apartments at 117 N.E. US-24 highway.

The affordable homes won't require a background check or application fee, he said. Rent will be monthly and between $550 to $600.

Potential clients will need proof of identification, and there won't be a waiting list.

"So, everything is different here. When you show up, see the apartment, you like it, you pay for it," Jalosjos said. "Then you can come in. Our rules are very simple. You need to maintain the apartment, peaceful, quiet and secure. Secure to us is not secure like security. Secure to us is you secure your apartment, you pay your rent.

"If you make $200,000 a year and you want to go to 216 square feet of apartment, you're welcome to come. We don't pick and choose because maybe you are making a hundred thousand dollars a year, but you just want a small space. Then you can come to us."

Rendering shows what the affordable apartment unit at 117 N.E. US-24 Frontage Road will look like.
Rendering shows what the affordable apartment unit at 117 N.E. US-24 Frontage Road will look like.

New apartments are a $1 million investment to North Topeka

The Topeka Community Foundation made an investment of $300,000, and $700,000 was borrowed from Alliance Bank.

"So, we don't really get into managing how they manage their properties," said Ben Murphy, president of Alliance Bank. "We just look at the numbers and make sure that it looks good on a financial standpoint. We talk about spreadsheets, we look at it, what he estimates he's going to get for monthly rents.

"We kind of plug that into a spreadsheet that kind of says, 'OK, based on these expenses and these number of units, you're going to need to charge this much in order to pay off the debt and then have a little extra for any kind of miscellaneous expenses.'"

Marsha Pope, right, president of the Topeka Community Foundation, talks about why affordable housing in the area is important and how, from left, Dina and Reden Jalosjos, owners of Reden Construction and Property Management, are creating that in North Topeka. Also pictured is Ben Murphy, president of Alliance Bank.
Marsha Pope, right, president of the Topeka Community Foundation, talks about why affordable housing in the area is important and how, from left, Dina and Reden Jalosjos, owners of Reden Construction and Property Management, are creating that in North Topeka. Also pictured is Ben Murphy, president of Alliance Bank.

Pope said the Topeka Community Foundation is tackling such important issues in the community as child care, affordable housing and access to health. Because those are complex, grants make a difference but are limited in scope.

"We created an impact investment model for our organization where we can take the dollars that we would be investing in Wall Street and now invest them locally," Pope said. "So, a small portion of our portfolio is now dedicated to investing in Topeka around these important issues. We are partnering with Alliance Bank to invest in affordable housing to help our neighbors who need our help the most."

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When will the affordable apartments be available?

Footing and foundation have already been placed for construction to begin on the apartments.

Reden and Dina Jalosjos said the apartments should be open for availability in the next eight months.

The current North Vista Apartments, 117 N.E. US-24 highway, will be razed to make way for a new affordable housing complex through Reden Construction and Property Management.
The current North Vista Apartments, 117 N.E. US-24 highway, will be razed to make way for a new affordable housing complex through Reden Construction and Property Management.

Keishera Lately is the business reporter for the Topeka Capital-Journal. She can be reached at klately@cjonline.com. Follow her on Twitter @Lately_KT.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: New apartment complex in North Topeka prioritizes affordable options