Travis County commissioners on May 21 approved the issuing of $31 million in bonds to finance an affordable senior housing project on the border of Pflugerville and North Austin. Two days later, Round Rock City Council approved an affordable senior housing project at 1001 University Blvd.

“I think this is fabulous, particularly because we know our senior population is growing, and it’s wonderful that we’re making these available at deeply affordable rates,” Commissioner Brigid Shea said.

The Austin-Round Rock metropolitan statistical area is home to the country’s second-fastest growing population of adults age 65 and older as well as the fastest-growing population of adults between 55 and 64 years old, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

“Looking at the demand, there hasn’t been a whole lot of senior affordable housing in the Round Rock area,” said Bobbi Lucas, president and chief operating officer of Cornerstone Associates LLC, the developer behind the Round Rock project. “We feel like we found a diamond in the rough. It just was meant to be.”

Additional reporting by Emma Freer