Major Milestones in Affordable Housing Development

 

Crowds gather for the opening of the Stuart St Apartments in September, the first housing to be renovated and converted into permanent affordable housing under the Small Sites Program.

 

After decades of underproduction, Berkeley is leading the way on the creation of affordable housing. In 2018, Berkeley voters approved Measure O, a $135 million dollar bond for affordable housing. Since then, 972 units of affordable housing have either been built (242), are currently under construction (150), or are in predevelopment (580). This does not include the $53 million allocation towards the creation of hundreds of units at both Ashby and North Berkeley BART stations. For comparison, from 2011 - 2018, only 57 units of affordable housing were produced.

I am thankful to our community for its support for various measures that have enabled us to make these achievements. I also want to thank City staff for their assistance in making these projects possible, and to the non profit agencies who have undertaken these developments. Below are some of the highlights of what we have accomplished so far, with the knowledge that there’s still plenty of work to be done.

Berkeley Way Apartments and Hope Center Opens

 

Hundreds gathered for last week's grand opening of the largest affordable housing development in Berkeley's history.

 

On Thursday, October 27th, the grand opening of the Berkeley Way Apartments and Hope Center took place, marking the completion of the largest affordable housing development in the city’s history. The vision for the HOPE Center first began in 2009, when Berkeley Food & Housing Project (BFHP) and the City approved a framework for relocating the BFHP Men’s Shelter to a new seismically safe, multi-service center, focused on housing first. Following that in 2013, the City Council initiated a Request for Proposals to replace the city’s surface level parking lot at 2012 Berkeley Way with affordable and permanent supportive housing, along with supportive services. BFHP and BRIDGE Housing were selected to plan a joint development on the site. Funding from the Measure O bond provided critical dollars to help finance the development. Groundbreaking took place in 2020, and the first residents began moving in at the end of September 2022.

Berkeley Food & Housing Project operates the Hope Center portion of the site. This includes 53 units of permanent supportive housing for homeless and disabled adults, 32 shelter beds for homeless adult men, 12 transitional housing beds for homeless male veterans (in partnership with Veterans Affairs), offices for support staff and partners agencies such as LifeLong Medical and Berkeley Mental Health, and a communal kitchen and dining facility with daily community meals. The BRIDGE Housing portion is the Berkeley Way Apartments, 89 units that are rented out for low and very low-income families, which include studio, one, and two bedroom units.

Measure O Produces Around 800 Units and Counting

 

Jordon Court, a senior affordable housing development that opened earlier this year, was the first to be completed with the help of Measure O funds.

 

Of the 972 units of affordable housing that have been built, under construction, or are in predevelopment, 784 of them have been funded in part through Measure O. So far, $111 million of the $135 million bond has been allocated, which with matching funds, have allowed every Measure O dollar to be matched nearly five-fold. In addition to the Berkeley Way Apartments and Hope Center , other projects that have received Measure O funds include:

  • Jordan Court - The first affordable housing project completed to include Measure O funds, and the first affordable housing built in North Berkeley in decades. The development at Oxford/Cedar includes 34 units for seniors at 20-60% Area Median Income (AMI). 12 of these units are set aside for individuals who have previously experienced homelessness.

  • Maudelle Miller Shirek Community - Named after the longtime Councilmember and Vice Mayor, this development located near Ashby BART will provide 86 units for individuals and families at 20-80% AMI. Construction started in early 2022 and is scheduled for completion in Spring 2024.

  • Blake Apartments - Located in District 2’s San Pablo Corridor, this development is currently under construction and will provide 62 units (21 studios, 8 one-bedroom, 33 two-bedroom) for people at 30-60% AMI. 12 of these units will be prioritized for people with an intellectual or developmental disability.

  • 1740 San Pablo - Located in District 1’s San Pablo Corridor, this development will provide 54 units for families at 30-60% AMI. Groundbreaking is expected in 2023.

  • BUSD Workforce Housing - Located at the Berkeley Adult School, this development will create 110 units at 30-120% AMI for employees of the Berkeley Unified School District, allowing faculty and staff to live in the community they serve. Construction is expected to begin in late 2023 and is scheduled for completion in 2025.

  • Ashby and North Berkeley BART - $40 million of Measure O funds and an addition $13 million from Measure U1 and the Housing Trust Fund have been reserved for housing at the Ashby and North Berkeley BART stations, ensuring that at least 35% of housing developed will be deed restricted for low, very-low, and/or extremely low-income affordable housing. This percentage could increase pending our ability to generate more funds to finance this development. Construction at the BART sites would begin by 2025.

Three other proposals have tentatively been given Measure O funding reservations, but the final amount will be made during the third issuance of bonds. They include:

  • St. Paul Terrace - One of several developments in partnership with a local religious institution who has provided land to develop affordable housing, this will create 49 units at 30-60% AMI near Ashby BART.

  • Supportive Housing at People’s Park - 119 units at 10-50% AMI, including 62 units for formerly homeless individuals. Measure O funds would be used only for the Permanent Supportive Housing part of the project.

  • Ephesians Legacy Court - 79 one-bedroom units for people at 30–60% AMI located in South Berkeley. This is another development using land provided by a religious institution.

Affordable Housing Beyond Measure O

 

The Solano Avenue Apartments that were converted to permanently affordable housing under the Small Sites Program was funded though Measure U1 and the Housing Trust Fund.

 

Construction of Affordable Housing is a complex process that often requires funding from a wide range of sources. In addition to Measure O, there are other local measures that are used to help fund affordable housing:

  • Measure U1, a gross receipts tax on large apartment buildings, generates around $5-$6 million annually.

  • Measure P, a tax on property sales or transfers worth at least $1.5 million, raises around $10 million annually, and is used for homeless services, including new permanent housing.

Another local pool of funding is the Housing Trust Fund, which generates funds from a variety of sources such as mitigation fees in new commercial and market rate housing developments and condominium conversions. In addition to local sources, we are able to leverage these funds to receive even more funding from various regional, state, and federal programs.

Other developments that are underway that are not funded in part by Measure O are:

  • Northern California Land Trust’s Anti-Displacement Project - A recently acquired building by NCLT, this will renovate an 8 unit building to provide housing at 80% AMI in Southwest Berkeley.

  • MLK House - This is a renovation of an existing Single Room Occupancy (SRO) complex near Ashby BART, with 12 units that primarily serve clients of Berkeley Mental Health.

  • Ashby Lofts - This is another renovation of an existing affordable housing site in Southwest Berkeley, which includes 54 units at 30-50% AMI, including many with physical and mental disabilities.

  • Lorin Station - Located in the heart of the Adeline Corridor, this renovation will upgrade an existing affordable housing site that provides 14 units of various sizes for people at 60% AMI.

  • Rosewood Manor - Another renovation to ensure the future habitability of existing affordable housing, this provides 35 units at 60% AMI in South Berkeley.

  • Golden Bear Inn - As part of Project Homekey, this will convert a hotel in Northwest Berkeley into 44 units of permanent supportive housing for people at 30% AMI.

  • Stuart St. Apartments - One of two developments completed through the Small Sites Program this year, this renovated a vacant 8-unit building on a church-owned site for affordable housing at 80% AMI, in partnership with the Bay Area Community Land Trust (BACLT).

  • Solano Ave. Apartments - the second Small Sites development, in partnership with BACLT, converted a 13-unit building in North Berkeley that otherwise would have shuttered due to Ellis Act evictions, providing permanent affordability at 80% AMI.

We have achieved a significant amount of work over the past four years, yet we know that the need for affordable housing remains significant. Despite having 900 units of affordable housing developed, or in the pipeline in recent years, the demand requires us to construct thousands of units by the end of the decade. Specifically, under the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA), 3,854 units for very low income or low income individuals are needed by 2031.

Our community has shown what we can accomplish when we commit ourselves to advancing the creation of affordable housing. And with your continued support, we can continue this building boom of affordable housing and meet our needs to lift up our most vulnerable members of the community for years and decades to come.

Jesse Arreguin