The developers of San Marcos Ranch, a 956-unit housing project in the Eastern Goleta Valley, have received zoning approval from Santa Barbara County and plan to start construction later this year.

San Marcos Ranch is a collaboration of Presidio Capital Partners, the Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara and The Pacific Companies.

The project, at 125 S. San Marcos Road, will include 236 affordable units — or 25% of the total apartments.

The number of affordable apartments in the project is the largest number of low-cost units for a single project in the county’s history, according to Andrew Fuller, a partner at Presidio Capital Partners.

“This housing development marks a milestone in addressing our housing needs,” John Polanskey, director of housing development for the county’s Housing Authority, said in a statement.

“We are not only delivering the most affordable units in the county’s history in a single project, but we are doing so in a location that supports working families and individuals with easy access to daily necessities,” he said. “San Marcos Ranch represents a major step toward building inclusive, sustainable communities where everyone has an affordable place to call home.”

Construction on the project is scheduled to begin in October. The developers say the apartments should be ready for new tenants to move in by late 2027.

A representative for the county confirmed that the zoning clearance was approved on Aug. 29. The county also stated that applications for building permits have been submitted, and the developers are working with the Building & Safety Division to secure those permits.

The Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to vote Tuesday on whether to approve a batch of tax-exempt bonds for the project. The bonds, valued at $90 million, would be used to finance or refinance the project’s low-income units.

The project was first announced in 2023 after the owners of the San Marcos Growers property applied to build the complex across 30 acres of their land.

The application was submitted after the county began rezoning areas from agricultural to residential. The rezoning was done to make more land eligible for housing projects, to meet the state’s mandate that the county add 5,664 housing units by 2031.

Of those new housing units, 4,142 must be in the South County and 1,522 in the North County. Rezoning was part of Santa Barbara County’s Housing Element Update, which outlines ways to add apartments and homes to the region’s housing stock.

San Marcos Ranch developers say the location was chosen because it would be near existing infrastructure that residents can use right away.

“Its location offers future residents convenient access to employment centers, schools, parks, health care and retail, reducing the need for long commutes and promoting environmentally responsible growth,” developers said in a statement.

The development also will be close to San Marcos High School, the Magnolia Shopping Center, the Turnpike Shopping Center and Goleta Valley Cottage Hospital.

The complex will include a new one-acre public park that will connect to a three-acre park planned for San Simeon Oaks Village.

San Marcos Ranch also will feature amenities such as a lounge, a clubhouse, a fitness center, a pool, a spa, fire pits, barbecue areas, a community garden, a dog park and a walking trail.