by
Allyson Chiu


Guam - Last month it was Lada Gardens and now the Summer Green community is also part of available affordable housing units on island.


The rental community is no longer just a construction site as it has become a place for the Wilwayco family to call home. Michael and Gwyneth Wilwayco along with their children Seren and Camden Michael,are the first residents of Summer Green. "We're just really, really excited about it coming from an older building this is just heaven for us. It's so pretty, everything like the kitchen appliances - everything is new! It's like a dream come true," said Gwyneth.


The Wilwaycos were joined by many others for a ribbon cutting ceremony to celebrate the grand opening of the Summer Green community. The 4-story 72-unit building is an IRS Low-Income Housing Tax Credit project led by a development team including Core Tech International, Core Tech Development, Guam Facilities Foundation Incorporated, Boston Capital and Citi Community Capital.


Core Tech Development president and CEO Juno Eun told KUAM News, "It's a result of countless hours, weeks, months, and even years of hard work, dedication and collaboration of among equally countless number of people and organizations."


Summer Green is a part of the governor's affordable housing initiative as the units are available to Guamanians with incomes at or below 60% of the area median gross income. GHURA executive director Michael Duenas said, "When Governor Calvo came out and said build 3,000 houses. I said give me 20 years. He said build it in 7 years. But that's the challenge that we face now is to continue to strive to meet those 3,000 houses in the next 7 years because Guam is growing. The economy is getting better, they are going to be more jobs each year and people are going to be looking for affordable housing and that's what we need to do."


The apartments are 1, 2, 3, and 4 bedroom units with 660 square feet to over 1,300-square feet of living space. Rent ranges from $562 per month to $788 per month. Rental also covers amenities which include on-site management and security, an exercise facility, on-site mini mart and laundromat, barbeque pavilions and a basketball court. 4 of the units are even ADA-accessible.


It's not surprising that the Wilwaycos were more than eager to move in. Gwyneth added, "My husband actually, we lived right there at Pacific Towers and every day going to work he'd pass by this place and he'd see the construction going on and ever since January it wasn't even up yet he'd already be calling and calling every month he would call and it was perfect timing because our landlord had a new tenant so we had to be out by a certain date and they made it happen for us so we moved in 4 days ago and we're really happy with it."


For those interested in renting available units you can contact 646-5800 or visit the leasing office on the third floor of the Core-Tech Building.