County officials proposed a big initiative aimed at providing low-income housing to veterans, homeless people and families. They would like a $25 million funding pool, and 11 properties to develop in the county. NBC 7’s Alex Presha has more.
Two supervisors unveiled a major initiative Monday aimed at providing affordable housing for low-income seniors, vets, families and homeless people in San Diego County.
Supervisors Dianne Jacob and Ron Roberts said their plan would establish a $25 million pool to fund affordable housing construction. Their hope is to jump-start the building, renovation and acquisition of housing and stem the growing tide of homelessness.
They would also consider 11 properties in San Diego County to use as potential affordable housing units. Currently, eight of those properties are located in the City of San Diego.
“This is a regional initiative. Nobody's ever done it before, so I'm hoping that if this is successful, which I think it will be, that we will be able to expand this program into the future,” said Jacob.
California grants would provide the funding for this initiative, according to county officials. The supervisors’ plan will be presented next week.
A new study from the National Multifamily Housing Counsel shows that San Diego will need nearly 73,000 new apartments to keep up with demand.
“We are trying to make a difference,” said Roberts. “This couldn’t be happening at a more important time.”
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Tanya Cravero, a portfolio manager for SENTRE Living, said that while her company offers more traditional units the demand is even stronger for their smaller studios.
“It’s not surprising at all. All of our properties stay between 97 and 100 percent full,” said Cravero.
Increased demand for housing is coming from recent college graduates as well as older couples hoping to downsize their housing arrangement, said Cravero.
