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NEWSLETTER

#2              May 5, 2023

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In this issue
HISTORY OF LIGHT TREE APARTMENTS

The site, the original builder:  Light Tree was built as affordable housing in 1968 by a for-profit developer, well before East Palo Alto became a city.  

Finance to build: The 1960's-era project was financed by a HUD program that provided tax incentives in exchange for guaranteeing low-income affordability for 30-years.

Management issues: The HUD program provided essential affordable housing, but had some critical weaknesses.  First, maintenance was chronically underfunded, leading to dilapidation. ( Eventually Habitat for Humanity even stepped in to do volunteer maintenance.)    Second, at the end of the contract, the 94 apartments would revert to market rate (often leading to being demolished) unless a non-profit buyer could be found. 

Preserving long-term affordability: With considerable effort and a strong desire to preserve its affordablity for the community, Citizens Housing and EPACANDO were able to buy Light Tree in 1997.  A rehab of 94 units was completed in 2001.

Unfortunately, Citizens Housing became over-extended through many such efforts across the Bay Area.  In 2011 they went out of business.  Their portfolio was divided up among other housing non-profits and none were lost.  

Partnership with Eden:  In 2010, Eden Housing took over Citizens Housing’s ownership interest in Light Tree, and became a valued partner with EPACANDO.

A detailed assessment of the situation showed that a majority of 94 households were “aging in place” in apartments not designed for seniors (for example, no elevators); all the apartments needed major renovation; and almost half of them should just be demolished.
 
The scale of work necessary led to the realization that the whole site could be replanned to provide affordable, high-quality apartments for the current residents as well as another 91 families.

Plans and approvals: It took 7 years from 2012 to 2019 to ….round up the money, decide what to build, communicate with all the local residents, and get through the environmental and planning modifications.

Eden builds: The construction phase has only taken 2 years
Light Tree project is example

    What it takes to have affordable housing

Here are the elements of what it takes to create and keep affordable housing, like the Light Tree Apartments project: The following articles illustrate how each of the elements played out for the Light Tree Apartments project.
"What's wanted?"

    Unique to EPA: community support for new affordable housing

 Unlike some of our neighboring towns who are reluctant to build housing [wacky ways peninsula communities are trying to avoid building housing - Palo Alto Online], East Palo Alto has consistently supported affordable housing.  From instituting stabilization to requiring 20% of new housing to be priced for affordability, residents have demanded that those
who live here be able to stay here.

That commitment to anti-displacement and
affordable housing options is still very clear today.
 
"What's possible?"

    It's hard to find sites for affordable housing

On the mid-peninsula, most available land is infill - smallish plots between already-built neighbors.  The land cost makes any new project hard to justify.

"upfill" instead of infill?
Someone at Eden Housing had a bright idea: instead of seeking a new site, why not just use the land of an existing project, and build it up higher?  The Eden/EPACANDO site at Light Tree Apartments needed renovation by 2018.  And so the process of redesigning and rebuilding some of the buildings began.

In short, the proposed project would tear down two of the existing buildings at each end of the 3.3-Acre property, then build 5-story apartments over parking. The central buildings would be kept and renovated.
Project summary and environmental impact 2018
Light Tree's old buildings being demolished 2018
The finished 185 family units have been completed in 2023.  Thus the total number of affordable units is about double the previous 95, without needing new land.
Determining "what's possible"

    Given a site, satisfy government constraints

It takes a lot of paperwork to implement affordable projects such as Light Tree, even putting aside any constraints on the money available [next section], 

Submit plans and get approval:
The City has a lot of specifications such as number of units, open space, height, parking, distance from street and other buildings, inspections of the work, and so on. 

The State requires that each city have an approved Housing Element Chapter in its General Plan to show how it will meet its Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA), and requires an environmental-impact analysis for each project..

Utility districts also require plans and approvals: PG&E for electricity; EPASD or West Bay Sanitary for sewer; the relevant water company; Menlo Park Fire; a cable/internet service.


Problems overcome to get approval for "what's possible" at Light Tree:
  • Residential zoning: from 3-stories maximum to 5-stories
  • Density "bonus": additional units could be built because the project is affordable to lower-income families
  • Fewer parking spaces in exchange for transit-friendly changes (Eden will give residents free passes on public transportation, add sidewalks, bicycle parking)
  • Relocation plan: current residents in buildings being demolished could move to empty apartments (if available), or temporarily offsite, then move back to a newly-constructed apartment.
  • Fire-ready water access: pay for building the City's new tank near Home Depot
  • Negociating and financing an exception to East Palo Alto Sanitary District's moratorium on new sewer service connections
  • Use of electricity thoughout
And, of course, after negociating solutions to the above problems, any changes had to be reflected in the building plans.
Money...

    Creativity to finance the project

A "Bundle" of money, grants, donations and loans is needed for a large project like Light Tree, because future "affordable" rents won't cover construction costs.  For EPACANDO and its development partner, Eden Housing, assembling the bundle was like having to search for the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle in all the closets of a house, before putting the puzzle together.
 
For example: Is the project rehabilitation of older buildings, or new construction? In the end, both! The developers split the project into two, [LT2(new) and LT3(rehab)], to be able to qualify for grants that were available for one or the other, but not both.
 
Some of the creative funding pieces that eventually fit together came from Bay Area transit programs, programs for the homeless or for people with disabilities.  And an important large piece for the new construction came from the state Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Program, which supported "green" buildings, and transit-oriented design.

Among the "green" features supported by the state grant
  • 100% electric apartments, and solar panels on roofs
  • bicycle storage and upgrades to local sidewalks
  • natural daylighting and passive ventilation
  • centralized heat-pump water heaters
  • elevators and adaptable features
San Mateo County sources of State and Federal funding for housing 2008-2021,  /California Housing Partnership | chpc.net/housing_needs
A builder to erect the buildings  .. important partner for EPACANDO

    Eden's development expertise benefits EPA

For its large housing projects, EPACANDO needs partners.  EPACANDO relys on engineers, planners, contractors and managers of an experienced non-profit builder, such as Eden for Light Tree.  Eden staff far outnumbers the half-dozen folks at EPACANDO.

While Eden engages and oversees the ultimate physical construction, EPACANDO interfaces with City government and local residents to assure the project can proceed through all the steps to move-in.

EPACANDO staff and volunteers have advocated for this redevelopment project in the city, and brought it to planners, government, services and neighbors -- throughout the entitlement, permitting and building process.

We have been successful in finding community support for this development that will improve and provide homes for many families.

 
"How to select new residents"

    Qualifying applicants and the lotteries

  There are income restrictions: the complex has a fixed number of apartments for families whose income is 30%, 50%, or 60% of Area Median Income - AMI.   To choose who gets the unit to live in, a lottery is held. Before being eligible for the lottery, applicants must
  • wait for the waiting list to be open
  • join the lottery list
  • submit their qualifications via whatever instructions are given
  • qualify for a particular unit
Because some of the funding for Light Tree came from different sources, there may be separate selection procedures for a particular apartment.
 
Target Population: Light Tree Apartments is developed primarily for large families (2-3 bedrooms).  However, 34 units are reserved for supportive housing, most at Light Tree Two (New Construction):
  • 10 units are reserved for intellectually and developmentally disabled (I/DD) individuals, funded by the Department of Developmental Services and referred to the project by the Golden Gate Regional Center (GGRC).
  • 15 units are reserved for formerly homeless and former foster youth referred to the project by the Housing Authority of the County of San Mateo (HACSM).
  • 9 units are reserved at Light Tree Three (Rehab) for chronically homeless and individuals at-risk of homelessness, funded by HCD’s No Place Like Home Program (NPLH) referred  by the County of San Mateo Behavior Health and Recovery Services’ (BHRS) Coordinated Entry System (CES).
                                                                                              



Subsidies:
Light Tree Apartments will receive project-based voucher rental subsidies for all 182 restricted units, 89 project-based vouchers from the county [HACSM] and 94 vouchers from an existing federal [HUD] project-based rental assistance contract.


Rental subsidies allow residents to limit their monthly rent payments to 30% of their income and prevents families from becoming rent burdened.

Thus, new tenants in a one-bedroom apartment pay $932-$1585, depending on their income.
 
>>>  Join the celebration for Light Tree Apartments Grand Re-Opening May 12, 10:30-2:30 - on East Bayshore near Home Depot!
"How to preserve"

    Keeping housing functional, safe, attractive

Placemaking and Amenities: The project at Light Tree consists of six buildings that offer a variety of amenities common to Eden’s high-quality projects. The existing community room and property management offices were renovated and expanded to create a new community kitchen, resident services offices, and case management meeting rooms. The project also added a new half-court basketball area, three new laundry rooms, elevator service, two play structures, a podium level community garden, swimming pool, pool house, and bike room.

Management: The updated Light Tree will have 3 on-site manager apartments.  In addition to tenant management and physical upkeep, the managers collaborate with the resident-support-service staff.

Resident Support Services: Eden’s service coordination staff provides programming that helps build community and support the residents, including after school, summer, and technology programs for youth and financial management and homebuyer training for adults. Services will be provided to all residents free of charge for a minimum of 15 years by Eden Housing Resident Services, Inc. (EHRSI).

EHRSI collaborates with County of San Mateo Behavioral Health Services and the Golden Gate Regional Center to provide targeted case management services to 35 supportive housing households at Light Tree Apartments.

In the News... May is Affordable Housing Month

 
--    EPA-OPA Website Update.  If you have been following the City’s
consideration of an Opportunity to Purchase ordinance, you’ll probably find
the updated epaopa.com website interesting.  The ordinance would give tenants and qualified nonprofits a right to get notice and to make an offer if/when their house or building is about to go up for sale.  Keep an eye out for related City events in May and June.
 

-- Panel includes EPACANDO's Iliana Nicholas discussing barriers to equity...

Barriers include cost, access to financing, and navigating complex local processes.
Join the conversation, as we discuss the disparities and actions local jurisdictions can take to remove barriers to ADU construction for lower-income homeowners of color, along with broader recommendations to increase ADU construction overall.


--  The California Housing Partnership annually assesses the needs of California’s low-income renters, for the purpose of informing state and local policy leaders. Key findings from this year’s [state-wide]
California Affordable Housing Needs Report:
  • California spends twice as much supporting homeowners than renters
  • only 17% of renter resources are permanent compared to 97% of the support for homeowners.
  • Black renter households are 41% more severely cost burdened than white renter households.
  • Although California has more than tripled production of new affordable homes in the past four years, the State is only funding 20% of what it needs to meet its goals. 

EPACANDO's Mission


To create affordable housing and
to promote community and economic development
in the city of East Palo Alto.

How we do it
We accomplish our mission by building and maintaining affordable housing. Additionally our mission is met by providing educational workshops and counseling in the area of home buying, credit and budgeting.


epacando.org
East Palo Alto Community Alliance and Neighborhood Development Organization
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