The Housing Authority of the City of Alameda (AHA) announced it has received $20.6 million from the State of California Department of Housing and Community Development. This funding will help AHA build “North Housing Senior Apartments,” which is the first phase of the long planned North Housing community development project.

“The California Multifamily Super NOFA transformed a once burdensome and lengthy funding application process into an accessible and smart one-stop shop that will get more housing built faster,” said Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency Secretary Lourdes Castro Ramírez. “This results in new homes for struggling working families, veterans, farmworkers and people exiting homelessness. California will continue to act with urgency to find new, innovative solutions to fast track housing development.”

This senior property will include 64 affordable apartments for only seniors (ages 62 years and older) and is comprised of forty studios, twenty-three one-bedroom apartments, and a two-bedroom apartment for an onsite manager.

The land, which was originally owned by the Housing Authority in the 1940s, was granted back to the Housing Authority in 2019 via the surplus land act by the U.S. Department of Navy. The land will now serve as the home for a senior property that houses military veterans. Twenty-five percent of the residents at North Housing Senior Apartments will be veterans in need of supportive housing.

“Studios and one-bedroom apartments are in very high demand in the City of Alameda and fill a great need for both seniors and previously homeless military veterans,” said AHA Board Chair Carly Grob in a statement about the funding.

Island City Development (ICD), an affiliate of AHA, will be the developer of this project. HKIT Architects will be the architects of the North Housing Senior Apartments. AHA will own the land the development is located. Once the property opens, all leasing and property management services will be provided by FPI Management. (The future opening date is to be determined.) AHA staff is actively planning for this community development project to begin construction in either late 2023 or early 2024.

Amenities at the development will include a community room, indoor mailroom/lobby, on-site parking, laundry room, bike parking, Wi-Fi hotspot and property management office. AHA’s social services partner LifeSTEPS will provide case management and resident services that connect seniors to resources like food, medical, rental assistance, transportation, hoarding resources, social activities and more.

According to a 2022 report from Richard Bangert (https://alamedasun.com/news/housing-policies-perpetuate-inequality,” June 27, 2022), the 12-acre North Housing site was acquired for free from the Navy and has checked off every conceivable box to become shovel ready. A master plan has been approved by the city. The land has been cleared and is ready to build, with new infrastructure constructed in the surrounding streets.

Despite the stellar qualifications of this project, the first phases of the first block are nowhere near full funding. The first two phases on one block that will construct 90 units of supportive housing and support services for those experiencing or facing homelessness is expected to cost $92 million, according to Vanessa Cooper, Executive Director of the Alameda Housing Authority.

AHA has provided a range of housing assistance to low-income households for more than 80 years. To learn more, visit www.alamedahsg.org.