CA HUD Awards $4 Mil for Homeless Veterans

[boardman]

California Department of Housing and Community Development Awards Nearly $4 Million for Homeless Veterans

Sacramento – The California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) today announced an award of nearly $4 million to help develop Mather Veterans’ Village, a supportive, multi-faceted living environment for veterans who might otherwise be homeless.

“HCD is proud to be part of this effort to help veterans in the Sacramento area who are homeless or disabled,” said Acting HCD Director Randall A. Deems. “Mather Veterans’ Village will offer more than just a temporary bed for veterans. The service-rich community will address many of the challenges homeless veterans are facing today and help guide them toward independent living.”

There are approximately 1.9 million veterans in California, the most in any state in the nation. Unfortunately, veteran status can increase the risk for homelessness for both men and women; Mather Veterans’ Village will help to address this need for low income veteran housing in Northern California.

“When veterans return from military service, many are faced with challenges of finding employment, reintegrating back to civilian life and in some cases dealing with wounds of war, some physical and some mental or emotional, but one challenge they should never face is homelessness,” said California Department of Veterans Affairs Secretary Peter J. Gravett. “This project will help veterans in the Sacramento region struggling with that transition and give them a safe place to call home.”

Mather Veterans’ Village will be developed by Mercy Housing California, a nonprofit organization that has developed over 11,000 affordable homes in California. Mather Veterans’ Village will serve a spectrum of disabled homeless veterans in and around the Sacramento region by providing permanent supportive housing.

“The HCD commitment to Mather Veterans’ Village has made this dream of so many people and organizations one giant step closer to reality,” said Stephan Daues, Regional Director of Housing Development for Mercy Housing. “We’ve reached this stage through a collaborative public-private partnership like none other. Under the leadership of the City of Rancho Cordova, the County of Sacramento, the Air Force, Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency, and the Veterans Administration all played a significant role in bringing us to this critical juncture. We are thrilled to add HCD to that list of partners.”

The four new construction residential buildings that make up Mather Veterans’ Village will hold a mix of 50 one and two-bedroom apartment homes. Rents will be affordable to veterans earning between 20%-30% of the Area Median Income.

Onsite services will enrich the resident’s daily experiences with independent living workshops, individualized coaching, financial management, health and wellness and employment counseling.

HCD’s awards for this development come in the form of $3 million from the Multifamily Housing Program and $941,522 from the Infill Infrastructure Grant Program. The financing comes from the voter-approved Housing and Emergency Shelter Trust Fund Act of 2006 (Proposition 1C).