County leaders eye new Project Homekey proposals

State homeless funding could support 150 units with four applications

SANTA CRUZ >> Moving swiftly to capitalize on potentially tens of millions of dollars in state homelessness solution funding, the Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors will consider greenlighting three new Project Homekey affordable housing project applications Tuesday.

On the day’s consent agenda, County Human Services officials are urging the board to partner with developers for a 14-room Ben Lomond project, a 35-unit Soquel project and a 94-unit city of Watsonville project. Should the $62.5 million in grant applications be approved, the county will play primarily a titular, rather than a financial, role in the developments. The affordable housing grant applications come just two weeks after the board voted to back its first Project Homekey development for a seven-unit housing project in the city of Santa Cruz.

Project Homekey applications filed prior to Jan. 31 or eligible for a less competitive Central Coastspecific pool of funding. All approved Project Homekey applications are required to finish their projects within a year of receiving the award and to commit to occupying the housing within 90 days of completing the project.

Project pending funding

Up for consideration this week is a $10 million request from the Santa Cruz County Veterans Memorial Building Board of Trustees for the conversion of Jaye’s Timberlane Resort at 8705 Highway 9 in Ben Lomond into Veterans Village. The motel is outfitted with 10 rental cabins and a fourbedroom, three-bathroom singlefamily home. Future site development may include the addition of nine additional rental units on the property, bringing the unit total to 20.

In Soquel, 2838 Park Ave, LP is seeking up to $13.5 million for as many as 35 permanent supportive housing units and one manager’s unit in a three-story building. The developer, formed as a collaboration between Novin Development Corporation and the Central Valley Coalition for Affordable Housing, is seeking to build on a vacant commercial lot at the corner of Park Avenue and Cabrillo College Drive and adjacent to a commercial office site. The applicant is proposing to expedite construc

tion with modular structures, in order to meet the Project Homekey deadlines, according to the agenda report. A property management company would work with Abode Services to provided needed residential support. The board separately will consider approving an additional $1.4 million loan of County Planning low-moderate housing funds for this project.

The third proposed applicant, Shangri-La Development Inc., is seeking up to $39 million to acquire and renovate the Rodeway Inn at 1620 W. Beach St. in Watsonville. The site already has served during the pandemic as a Project Roomkey COVID-19 shelter. The motel would be converted into 94 permanent supportive housing micro-units. The rooms would be available to occupants with incomes below 30% of the area median income and set aside 14 units for persons with mobility disabilities and nine units for persons with hearing or vision disabilities.

New homeless oversight

During the same meeting, the board also is set to make its nominations to a recently revamped county homelessness oversight board. Per federal regulations, the WatsonvilleSanta Cruz area is required to maintain a “continuum of care” focused on coordinating efforts to prevent and end homelessness, in order to be eligible for certain funding. Historically, the local entity was dubbed the Homeless Action Partnership. Last year, however, members reworked its governing structure — and its name. Beginning this year, the team of local stakeholders will be known as Santa Cruz County Housing for Health Partnership, echoing Santa Cruz County’s Housing for Health Division, which is nestled within the Human Services Department.

The board will consider nominating county Health Services Agency Assistant Director Tiffany CantrellWarren, Santa Cruz County Public Defender Heather Rogers, 3rd District Supervisor Ryan Coonerty and 1st District Supervisor Manu Koenig to the collaborative group’s 15-member policy board. The board will return for consideration of final appointments Feb. 1.