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Housing Authority Of The City Of Santa Barbara Opens
Johnson Court, The First Housing Development
in Santa Barbara for Homeless Veterans
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On Friday, February 14
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, the Housing Authority Of The City Of Santa Barbara (HACSB) came together with the community to celebrate the grand opening of Johnson Court - the first housing development in Santa Barbara County specifically for veterans.
The event kicked off with the National Anthem sung by Tina Schlieske, a local rock artist from Santa Barbara and followed with a Presentation of Colors by the Vandenberg Air Force Base Honor Guard. Moving speeches came from HACSB’s CEO and Executive Director, Rob Fredericks, as well as from a daughter from the Johnson family, US Congressman Salud Carbajal and Donna Williams, whose late husband Ken Williams inspired the name of the on-site community room.
Ken Williams was a local hero who walked the streets of Santa Barbara for more than three decades, reaching out to the poor and the marginalized in the Santa Barbara community. He was also a United States Marine and a Vietnam Veteran.
Johnson Court will have 16 studio units for very low and low-income veterans, a two-bedroom manager unit, and common area and office space to accommodate the provision of services and activities on-site. Veterans will begin moving in this week.
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The Johnson Family in front of Johnson Court, named after their father Vernon Johnson,US Congressman Salud Carbajal and Ken William’s wife, Donna Williams.
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Introducing
the Los Angeles County Development Authority
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County Agency Makes Changes to Better Serve Residents, Partners, and Clients
After 36 years as an established, trusted community leader in the core areas of housing, community development, and economic development, the Community Development Commission/Housing Authority of the County of Los Angeles (CDC/HACoLA) was rebranded as the Los Angeles County Development Authority (LACDA) on May 16, 2019.
Through the years, the agency made a difference countywide by preserving single-family homes, creating affordable rental housing opportunities for veterans, families, and persons experiencing homelessness; funding and constructing parks, libraries, and other public facilities; and providing support to help businesses – small and large – start up or continue their success. The rebranding offered an opportunity for the agency to reconnect with residents, partners, and clients, reintroduce its program portfolio, and expand service operations and initiatives to meet the needs of Los Angeles County’s residents and businesses.
The formation of the LACDA combined the strength of two successful agencies – the CDC and HACoLA – that have a history of operating in tandem, as separate legal entities. Having one agency, under one management structure, and one uniform voice, allows the LACDA to continue its endeavors of ending generational poverty and homelessness, encouraging community development, and empowering County residents and businesses to reach their full potential. The new structure allows the agency to streamline budgeting, staffing, and programmatic operations, and more importantly, create a singular and more distinctive identity both internally and to our community partners. The LACDA’s core mission, to Build Better Lives and Better Neighborhoods, remains strong and intact and does its commitment to work with, and for, its partners.
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Phoenix Revitalizes Neighborhood with New
Mixed-Income Housing Units
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The city of Phoenix Housing Department began the construction of Soluna, the first Choice Neighborhoods mixed-income housing development in the Edison-Eastlake Community. “It is fitting that a historic neighborhood such as Edison-Eastlake will be the home for innovative new housing units,” said Mayor Kate Gallego. “These new mixed-income units not only provide more modern amenities to residents, they offer a sense of place with added resources to promote community. The Valley has a long way to go to meet our residents’ need for affordable housing - but this is a great step in the right direction.” Soluna is the first phase of rental housing units developed as part of a $30 million Choice Neighborhoods Implementation Grant from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to revitalize the Edison-Eastlake neighborhood. “Soluna's groundbreaking is another positive step towards building an inclusive city, where all residents have safe, convenient housing,” said Councilmember Carlos Garcia. “Having affordable housing for all Phoenicians is a goal that I will continue to work towards making a reality.”
This mixed-income community will consist of 177 one- to five-bedroom, modern, energy-efficient units. Amenities include community rooms, playgrounds, a computer lab, a fitness center, and green space with plenty of shade trees. Soluna is scheduled to open in 2021. In the next five years, the city will demolish 577 public housing units and construct 1,011 mixed-income housing units while providing supportive services for residents and improving the neighborhood and parks.
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The Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles
88th & Vermont Apartments
Grand Opening - January 6, 2020
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The Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA) is pleased to announce the Grand Opening of 88th & Vermont Apartments! Located at 957 W. 88th St. and 8740 S. Vermont Ave. in Los Angeles, the Grand Opening took place on January 6, 2020 and was attended by LA County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, Mayor Eric Garcetti, and HACLA President & CEO Doug Guthrie, along with many other community leaders.
This new development brings much needed affordable housing and a community center to South Los Angeles, providing permanent supportive housing by project developer, Women Organizing Resources Knowledge and Services (WORKS). The project was awarded $9,680,000 in HHH funding and is the first project to come online that is funded by Proposition HHH, a city bond measure to construct 10,000 affordable housing units with services for homeless individuals and families within 10 years.
The project will service a target population of homeless individuals, families, and Transition Age Youth, frequent users of County Health Services, and has a total of 62 units, 19 of which are allocated to HACLA’s Project Based Voucher (PBV) Program. HACLA’s estimated project contribution totals approximately $7.6 million in HAP over the 20-year contract.
Housing Works, and Community Build, Inc. will serve as supportive service providers, offering wraparound services for the community.
WORKS currently has five projects in the HACLA PBV Program, including: Young Burlington Apartments, T. Bailey Manor, Teague Terrace, Depot at Hyde Park, and 88th and Vermont, totaling 128 PBV units and a commitment of $28.1 million in HAP. To date, HACLA has committed 5,505 PBVs to PSH-PBV and HUD-VASH PBV projects in the City of Los Angeles.
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Groundbreaking Set for Next Phase of Arrowhead Grove Neighborhood Revitalization
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Groundbreaking was held January 16
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for the next phase of the Arrowhead Grove Neighborhood Revitalization, formerly known as the Waterman Gardens Public Housing site.
This second on-site phase community – Crestview Terrace - will result in a total of 184 mixed-income family apartments and complete the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development required one-for-one replacement of the original 252 Public Housing units. The new construction will provide 147 affordable one- to five-bedroom family units with an additional 35 market-rate units interspersed across the site and two units for property employees.
Two initial phases of the Waterman Gardens redevelopment have already been completed. Valencia Vista, the first off-site phase with 76 units, opened to residents in December 2016. A little more than a year later, Olive Meadow, the first on-site phase with 62 units, opened in September 2017.
The Housing Authority of the County of San Bernardino (HACSB) partnered with National Community Renaissance (National CORE) to revitalize the previous 1942 Public Housing site. Other partners include Housing Partners I, Inc. (HPI), Hope through Housing Foundation, Clancy Co., U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, County of San Bernardino, City of San Bernardino, California Tax Credit Allocation Committee, Dignity Health, the state’s Strategic Growth Council, Bank of America and JP Morgan Chase. These partners are a testament of a robust public-private partnership that is transforming this much needed neighborhood.
“We are grateful to kick start another phase of this much anticipated neighborhood revitalization. We extended our thanks to all our partners, the residents, and the community for continuing to help us see this project through,” said Maria Razo, the Housing Authority of the County of San Bernardino’s Executive Director. “We are one step closer to developing much needed housing that is affordable, but also in continuing to transform this community together.”
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“With each new phase of Arrowhead Grove, we are reshaping the landscape and redefining the community at-large,” said Steve PonTell, President and Chief Executive Officer of National CORE. “We are proud to be part of a collective impact development that has been a catalyst for positive change for the entire city”.
Financing for the overall Arrowhead Grove plan is through a variety of private and public sources including low-income housing tax credit financing, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Rental Assistance Demonstration program, state’s cap-and-trade funding, and federal HOME-Investment Partnership funds.
“National CORE and the HACSB continue to impact the local community with important revitalization projects like Crestview Terrace that’s not only transforming the neighborhood, it’s changing people’s lives,” said Cecile Chalifour, West Division Manager, Community Development Banking, Chase. “We’re proud to support this redevelopment of needed affordable housing for the residents of San Bernardino.”
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SoCal FSS Network
News/Training
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SPRING 2020
SPECIAL TRAINING EVENT
March 24, 2020
The SoCal FSS Network Presents:
ANICE SCHERVISH CHANAULT
Anice Shervish Chanault
is the Program Manager for Housing And Urban Development’s (HUD) Family Self-Sufficiency (FSS program and the Grant Manager of JOBS Plus.
TOPIC: Family Self-Sufficiency Best Practices and Updates (Parts 1-4)
8:30 AM – 4:30 PM
The training will include most or all of the following:
New FSS Statute and Regulatory Changes Requirement to update your Administration Plan Trauma-Informed model & Executive Functioning FSS Program Best Practices Composite Score Updates Telling your FSS story Creating/changing you brand FSS + Repositioning FSS + PBRA SEMAP Indicator #14
It's Not Too Late!
PLEASE RSVP by March 13, 2020
TO: René Tarver
City of Oceanside Neighborhood Services
(760) 435-3378 work or
(760) 214-1166 (cell)
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