VIDALIA — A developer interested in eventually building nine apartment buildings and additional single-family homes has made a down payment on a 65-acre tract of land in Vidalia, City Manager Ken Walker said.

The identity of the developers is currently being kept secret, but Walker said the proposed development would be built with no federal, state or local assistance.

“The units would be strictly market rate for apartments to rent and for the houses to sell,” he said. “I think the Vidalia location will fit into what most young couples are looking for in a place to live.”

The land the development will be built on is in the area of the 900 block of Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue. The city manager said he expects that the formal process of selling the property will begin in the next 60 days and will close within 90 days.

The developers’ identity will be disclosed when the city starts to advertise the sale of the land, Walker said.

Because the property is currently municipally-owned, Walker said the city is vetting the company, which has submitted a master plan for the development.

“The city does not want to sell the land to somebody who does not have the financial wherewithal to finish the project,” he said. “From everything we have seen thus far, we are very positive and very hopeful.”

The land will be sold at its appraised value, Walker said. The city has had the land appraised in the last year, and it is valued at approximately $3,900 an acre.

Currently, Vidalia’s apartment housing options are limited, and Walker said there are fewer than 20 apartments in the city.

“I just had a lady call me saying she was looking for an apartment, and we just don’t have them,” Vidalia Mayor Hyram Copeland said. “There is a tremendous need for apartments in Vidalia, and we just need to get someone to start them.”

“I guarantee you we could rent 50 apartments just by giving them people’s names who are looking for apartments.”

Walker said the proposed development includes having a senior citizen’s living facility as part of the apartments. The development will be built one at a time, with additional buildings being added as the need arises. A similar model will be used for the proposed houses.

“At this point we have asked them for additional information regarding individual investors,” Walker said.

“We want to make sure what they are building, the quality of what they are building and does it fit in with the city’s over all plan of providing quality, affordable housing.”

The apartments will be 10 percent 1-bedroom units, 40 percent with three bedrooms and 50 percent with two bedrooms.

The apartments should rent for between $600 and $900 a month, and the houses will be valued at between $150,000 and $199,000, Walker said.