170 affordable units will be ready in 2006
The largest affordable housing project in Santa Barbara’s history broke ground Wednesday. When completed in early 2006, the St. Vincent’s affordable housing project will provide 170 new low-cost rental units to the community, 95 of which will be reserved for low-income seniors, and 75 of which will be for low-income families.
The project, located at 4200 Calle Real near Highway 154, has taken more than seven years of planning, fund raising, negotiating and coordinating between St. Vincent’s Daughters of Charity, Mercy Housing, the city, the county, the Hope and Santa Barbara school districts, builders Melchiori Construction and Walton Construction, and various other government and nonprofit entities.
“Although they say it takes a village to raise a child, apparently it takes a universe to raise a house,” Sister Amy Bayley of Mercy Housing said as she thanked the many people who worked to bring the project to fruition.
The total combined cost of the housing development, improvements ments to existing administrative buildings, creation of an adult day health center, and establishment of an operating endowment is estimated at $57 million.
“Rejoice with us. The dream of providing a safe haven for families and seniors is finally becoming a reality. We are thrilled that we are able to respond to this need for the Santa Barbara community,” said Sister Alicia Martin of St. Vincent’s.
Part of the reason the project took so long to break ground was its 19-acre site, which has a creek running through it. The property also had to be annexed from into the city from the county in order to make it eligible for redevelopment agency funds, said city housing and redevelopment manager Dave Gustafson.
Mitigations to the school districts were another factor that had to be negotiated. Because the property feeds into the Hope Elementary School District and the Santa Barbara High School District, they will share the $400,000 development fee to help offset the cost of providing additional classrooms, teachers and other support for the students the project is expected to bring.
The Hope district only has three schools, so the impact of the estimated 60 additional students is much more significant than it will be on the high school district. In recognition of this, the St. Francis Hospital Foundation generously pledged an additional $150,000 to help the district, said school board member Michael Underwood
Even though St. Francis Medical Center closed before the St. Vincent’s project got off the ground, its owner, Catholic Healthcare West, still met the financial obligation to the schools, said Bayley.
The site is currently zoned as part of the Vieja Valley School District, although that might change.
“The board is always looking to make sure that the socioeconomic balance is spread as equally as possible within the district … so that will be something that we be re-evaluating … in addition to our enrollment that we have, and the availability at each of our three school sites,” Underwood said.
Mercy Housing will act as landlord for both the senior and the family units, and expects to begin taking applications late next year. Households with incomes at or below 60 percent of area median income ($38,820 for a family of four) will be eligible for the two-, three-, and four-bedroom family units. The one-bedroom senior apartments will be available to seniors with a head of household 62 years or older, with incomes at or below 50 percent of area median income ($22,650 for a one-person household or $25,900 per year for a two-person household).