OCEANSIDE – La Mision Village Apartments, an 80-unit affordable housing project, was 100 percent leased before its grand opening Tuesday, and there are 100 people on the waiting list, said John Seymour, vice president of National Community Renaissance of California, the nonprofit that built the complex.

Seymour spoke at the opening ceremonies attended by a crowd that included state and city officials.

The $26 million project is on the site of the former landmark La Mision Restaurant, on Mission Avenue just east of Airport Road.

“This is not our first (affordable) project, and it will not be our last,” Mayor Jim Wood said at the ceremonies. The city contributed $6 million to the cost.

Councilman Jerry Kern said he doesn't think of the project as offering low-income housing, but rather as providing homes for people who work in Oceanside but can't afford high rents on the coast. La Mision rents start at $568 a month for a one-bedroom apartment, $681 for two bedrooms and $784 for three bedrooms.