South Bay affordable housing projects receive funding
4 projects for seniors and chronically homeless will split $28 million in loans
The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved nearly $28 million in loans for a handful of desperately needed housing developments that would largely benefit special needs seniors and the chronically homeless.
The funds will be drawn from Measure A — the $950 million affordable housing bond approved by voters last year. The first $250 million in general obligation bonds was sold in October.
The four projects in Cupertino, Gilroy, Morgan Hill and San Jose will add 126 permanent supportive housing units to help individuals and families with special needs obtain and maintain permanent housing, 22 apartments for very low-income households and six apartments for extremely low-income households, according to county staff.
The vote moves the county closer to realizing its lofty goal of building 1,800 units of permanent supportive housing, 800 units of extremely low-income housing and 600 units of very low-income housing.
“Your bold leadership will hopefully set the tone to encourage other counties throughout the Bay Area to do their part,” said Joshua Barousse, a spokesman for Silicon Valley Path Forward, a nonprofit organization that advocates for affordable housing.
The board on Tuesday also was slated to consider approving $17 million in loans for two other projects in San Jose that would add a total of 107 permanent supportive housing units and 23 extremely low-income apartments. A need for additional clarity concerning the ownership structure of the developments and assurances they will be used for affordable housing well into the future prompted the board to reschedule the vote for Dec. 5.
Of the four projects that were approved for funding, the Gateway Senior Apartments in Gilroy is the largest. The 75-unit development on Monterey Street would be divided between low-income seniors and seniors with special needs. In addition to a $7.5 million loan from the county, developer Danco Communities is receiving support from the city of Gilroy.
All of the developers will be required to submit quarterly updates on their progress in securing additional funding for their respective projects, and the final loan amounts will depend on tax credit awards and any additional funding they receive, according to county staff.