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May 2018 - In This Issue:
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A Triple Play at Affordable Housing Week 2018
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| (Left to right:) Pilar Lorenzana of SV@Home, State Sen. Bob Wieckowski, and Housing Trust's ADU Program Manager Vianey Nava |
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A hearty congratulations to our friends at
Silicon Valley at Home for their great work on Affordable Housing Week 2018. This year Housing Trust hosted three big events!
AHW 2018 - posts from which can be found on social media under the
#ItsTime4Yes hashtag - started out with the ADU panel on May 11 "Small Homes, Big Impact" - a standing-room-only panel at the Santa Clara County Association of REALTORS
® office in San Jose. Moderated by Teresa Alvarado of SPUR and featuring our own ADU program manager, Vianey Nava, State Senator Bob Wieckowski, and Pilar Lorenzana of SV@Home, it covered a lot of pressing issues when it comes to building Accessory Dwelling Units. Homeowners in the audience had a lot of good questions and the conversation about ADUs is continuing with
Housing Trust's new ADU program.
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| Registering attendees of the Homebuyer Assistance Fair in Milpitas. |
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The following day Housing Trust's Homebuyer team had a packed house at the Homebuyer Assistance Fair in Milpitas. The registration for this event filled up within hours - yet another indicator of how much demand there is for Housing Trust's down payment assistance and other programs to help those trying to afford #ABayAreaHome.
On Wednesday the 16th, Housing Trust's Chief Lending Officer, Jim Mather, taught the "Affordable Housing Finance 101" session at LinkedIn's offices in Sunnyvale. Board member and EVP of Technology Credit Union Joe Anzalone kicked off the session before "Professor Mather" took to the podium to walk attendees through the building challenges and maze of acronyms that make up the world of housing finance. His presentation was well received and the attendees had a good place to learn thanks to LinkedIn - a
TECH Fund partner a
nd a longtime investor in affordable housing solutions - generously hosting the event at their office.
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| Housing Trust Chief Lending Officer Jim Mather, addressing his class at LinkedIn. |
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Jim showed mercy on his class - particularly those who attempted to take cell phone photographs of his slides - by making the
Affordable Housing Finance
Also throughout the week were Affordable Housing Week proclamations made at several city and town halls. Housing Trust staff was able to attend both the one that took place in Mountain View given by mayor Lenny Siegel and, a couple of blocks from our new office on Santa Clara Street, the proclamation at San Jose's City Hall. A particularly gratifying moment came when, just moments before
Housing Trust CEO Kevin Zwick gave a addres
s at t
he proclamation, Mayor Sam Liccardo invited all of the "housers" in the audience to the floor, and various staffers who had crowded the first row of the chambers hoping to get a good photograph had to get up and move back several rows to get everyone in the shot.
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San Jose Proclamation of Affordable Housing Week, May 15, 2018 (front row view)
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| Wider shot showing all of the housers in attendance |
The moment, as well as
Kevin's remarks, truly conveyed just how many allies are fighting the fight for more affordable homes. Once again we thank Silicon Valley at Home as well as the sponsors and supporters of Affordable Housing Week for delivering a memorable and meaningful AHW 2018!
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Gilroy Compassion Center Gets Ribbon Cutting
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Gilroy Compassion Center Ribbon Cutting,
May 11, 2018 |
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Last year Housing Trust provided a $200,000 grant to the Gilroy Compassion Center - a wonderful organization that helps those experiencing homelessness - to help them renovate their kitchen, showers and laundry room which is expected to serve 600 local residents annually.
The opening of the new facility took place during affordable housing week and some of the Housing Trust family headed down for the event, which was May 11th - the first day of AHW.
Our recently retired COO Sandra Murillo, who worked on the grant before leaving her COO role in January, spoke on behalf of Housing Trust and we were gratified we would be a part of this group effort to help GCC!
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Guardino Affordable Housing Scholarship Is Open!
The Guardino Affordable Housing Scholarship is a $3,000 award given out to four students living in affordable housing and
attending college this fall.
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Measure A Funded Project Comes to Cupertino
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| At the Cupertino groundbreaking,April 19, 2018 |
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Ground was broken in Cupertino on the first of what will be many Measure A funded projects. Housing Trust provided a $3 million loan for our partners at Charities Housing; which is building affordable homes for seniors in a lot close to a VTA stop and within walking distance to groceries and shopping.
Thanks to the efforts of Charities Housing, the City of Cupertino, Assemblymembers Ash Kalra and Evan Low, Wells Fargo, the County of Santa Clara and others 18 families lives are going to change for the better. And with Vallco just around the corner, this will hopefully be the start of so much more affordable housing in Cupertino. Well done, all!
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