The information in this write up is based in a Santa Cruz City Council Agenda Report set forth on March 14th, 2017. For details and more information please see the following City Council Agenda Report.
- In response to the Santa Cruz’s eligibility for annual federal housing funding in the form of a Community Development Block Grant, Home Investment Partnership and additional funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Santa Cruz must declare a five year plan that discerns where the City will distribute these funds and what community needs must be met.
- The federal funding through the Community Development Block Grant is given under the condition that the funds must target low-income individuals and meet essential community needs. Home Investment Partnership funds on the other hand, are offered on the condition that such funding rehabilitate income-restricted housing as well as target renters and home buyers of low-income
- One of the projects targeted is the Water Street Affordable Housing Project, which is seeking to establish 41 units of affordable housing off of Water St. Santa Cruz. The City Council has already approved funding in the form of $2.6 million and will receive $671,615 in additional funding from Home Investment Partnership, as well as $11-$12 million in federal bonds from Low Income Housing Tax Credits.
- Affordable housing projects such as this are of immense importance in the face of the extremely high rent and home prices that Santa Cruz currently faces. This report on annual federal housing funding illustrates how funding for housing development and affordable housing units is one of the greatest obstacles to affordable rental and home prices. While other issues such as community resistance and environmental regulation play a role in limiting housing development and matching the extreme demand that California currently faces, finding the funding needed for affordable housing projects is arguably the greatest barrier to addressing the housing crisis that California faces.
The information in this write up is based in a Santa Cruz City Council Agenda Report set forth on March 14th, 2017. For details and more information please see the following City Council Agenda Report.
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