Story By Macy Meinhardt, Voice & Viewpoint Staff Writer
A total of $15.4 million in City funding under the Bridge to Home initiative has been awarded to five affordable housing projects—generating a total of 400 new homes in five different city council districts.
Announced in Mayor Todd Gloria’s Nov. 28th press release, the following projects are recommended for funding:
- Hillcrest Hall. CRP Affordable Housing and Community Development proposes 97 affordable homes for families plus one manager’s unit in Hillcrest with 10 of the homes with supportive services. Award recommendation is $3.175 million.
- Humble Heart. Wakeland Housing and Development Corporation proposes 72 affordable homes for families plus one manager’s unit in City Heights, with 33 of the homes coming with supportive services. Award recommendation is $1.23 million.
- Palm City Transit Village. National CORE proposes 78 affordable homes for families plus one manager’s unit in the Palm City/Nestor area with 24 of the homes with supportive services. Award recommendation is $6.23 million.
- Rose Creek Village. National CORE proposes 59 affordable single- room occupancy homes plus one manager’s unit in Pacific Beach, 18 of which would come with supportive services. Award recommendation is $4 million.
- Terrasini Senior Apartment. Chelsea Investment Corporation proposes 94 affordable homes for seniors plus one manager’s unit in Clairemont, 11 of which would come with supportive services. Award recommendation is $825,000.
In addition, of the 400 homes being built, 96 are slated to be set aside for permanent supportive housing for San Diegans experiencing homelessness.
Permanent supportive housing is rental housing that is affordable for low-income households and includes access to voluntary supportive services.
The Bridge to Home Program was launched by Mayor Gloria in an effort to produce more affordable homes for San Diegans. The multi-round initiative seeks to provide gap financing to qualified developers to produce affordable housing projects for families and individuals unable to afford market-rate housing.
The total investment through the first two rounds of Bridge to Home has helped fund 937 affordable homes in Rancho Bernardo, City Heights, El Cerrito, Downtown, Encanto and San Ysidro. This also includes 272 homes with attached supportive services for people experiencing homelessness or at risk of becoming homeless.
Affordable projects often need to secure funding from various local, state, and federal sources to prepare for construction. In Round three, the Bridge to Home program aims to offer essential upfront funding, giving qualified builders an advantage in competing for scarce resources when seeking direct grants, low-interest loans, or tax credits.
The success of this funding program has increased not only the money available to developers, but also built developer capacity and brought new affordable housing developers to San Diego. We are increasing the supply of affordable homes in the construction pipeline through all means possible,” said Christina Bibler, director of the Economic Development Department.
Bridge to Home is administered by the City of San Diego’s Economic Development Department through the combination of several funding sources: former redevelopment housing funds, federal funds and state Permanent Local Housing Allocation (PLHA) funds.
