Santa Monica’s largest affordable housing provider broke ground Friday on its first building outside city limits.
The LEED Platinum development from Community Corporation of Santa Monica will provide 50 apartments for low-income households in Mar Vista. 12 of the units in the building, which has been dubbed Vista Ballona, will be set aside for individuals with developmental disabilities. Community Corp. will offer case management services through Brilliant Corners and the Westside Regional Center.
The building comes as part of broader plans for Community Corporation of Santa Monica to expand throughout the Westside, according to a press release from the non-profit.
“We are thrilled to begin our partnership with the city of Los Angeles and contribute solutions that help to address the current affordability crisis in our region,” said executive director Tara Barauskas. “Vista Ballona will be an important addition to Mar Vista’s sorely needed affordable housing stock, making the Westside a more inclusive and vibrant place for everyone to live.”
Los Angeles City Councilmember Mike Bonin attended the Friday groundbreaking ceremony alongside other officials including Amy Anderson, Housing Deputy for Mayor Eric Garcetti, and Santa Monica Planning Commission Chair Leslie Lambert.
“(This) is the beginning of something beautiful here in Mar Vista, something that is going to transform lives here in Mar Vista and something that I hope is just a down payment on 2020 being the year of affordable housing in Los Angeles and on the Westside,” Bonin said. “The two things that this project is doing, it is working to fight two crises, two matters of life and death – climate change and affordable housing.”
The project was financed through low-income housing tax credits, a $3.9 million loan from the city of Los Angeles and $2 million from Brilliant Corners.
Community Corp. most recently opened the 64-unit Arroyo complex and has several projects in the works in Santa Monica, including the 55-unit Las Flores, 37-unit Pacific Link, 39-unit Greenway Meadows and eight-unit Little Berkeley.
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