Oakland, CA – The City of Oakland has been awarded $20,368,264 in State of California Homekey funds to acquire and rehabilitate the Quality Inn motel in Oakland’s District 7. This award marks Oakland’s eighth successful Homekey application, building on a stream of new opportunities for the City.
Governor Gavin Newsom on Friday announced more grant awards from the third round of Homekey, the Administration’s initiative to help communities to address the challenge of homelessness by rapidly expanding the availability of housing for at-risk individuals and families.
Located at 8471 Enterprise Way in Oakland’s District 7, the Quality Inn, a 104-unit motel, will be rehabilitated to serve Oakland’s vulnerable populations. Once completed, 77 units will be for residents experiencing homelessness and the remaining 26 will be for transitional-aged youth (TAY). Each unit will include a bedroom, bathroom and a kitchenette, and all will serve people at or below 30% of the Area Median Income.
"Oakland knows that the solution to homelessness is dignified housing, not allowing people to suffer on the streets. The acquisition of the Quality Inn motel in District 7, funded by the State of California Homekey program, exemplifies our commitment," said Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao. "This eighth Homekey award underscores Oakland's leadership in delivering permanent supportive housing, ensuring quick construction timelines, deep operating subsidies, and wraparound services. With this innovative approach, we are creating new permanent supportive housing at record speeds, providing a life-changing impact for those exiting homelessness."
As with all of Oakland’s Homekey projects, there will be a three-pronged structure to ensure the project is successful. California Supportive Housing (CSH) will develop and own the property, Shelter, Inc. will serve as the property manager and service provider, and Beyond Emancipation will provide supportive services for the TAY residents.
"We commend our Department of Housing & Community Development for securing Oakland’s eighth HomeKey award. It is pivotal for our city and the 103 families gaining housing stability in District 7 which I represent—and one of the most impacted areas of Oakland’s housing crisis, said Treva Reid, Councilmember for District 7. "Everyone deserves a home and, more importantly, affordable housing options to stay rooted in their community. 60% of Oakland residents are renters, and the majority are rent-burdened. Black Oaklanders also account for over 60% of those unhoused in Oakland, despite making up only 22% of our community. We are working with city leaders to disrupt the disproportionate impacts of homelessness and invest in a multitude of housing solutions and strategies to keep all Oaklanders housed, permanently.”
"Homekey has been a game changer for the City of Oakland,” said Oakland Housing and Community Development Director Emily Weinstein. “Now with its 8th Homekey award, the City is leading the region with the delivery of permanent supportive housing for people exiting homelessness. The State Homekey Program, as well as the City's local program, the Rapid Response Homeless Housing Program, ensures quick construction timelines, deep operating subsidies and funding for wraparound services so that more people can experience the life changing effects of safe and stable housing."
"Homekey is an innovative approach to create new permanent supportive housing at record speeds,” says Punit Bhargava, President and CEO of California Supportive Housing. “California Supportive Housing and its Support Service Providers are honored to partner with the City of Oakland, its leadership and its very helpful amazing staff to rapidly develop this much-needed affordable housing for California’s most vulnerable residents experiencing homelessness.”
Homekey, administered by California Housing & Community Development, is the state’s renowned program that began at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic to facilitate the purchase and/or rehabilitation of hotels, motels, vacant apartment buildings, manufactured homes, and other properties, and convert them into homes for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.
“Over a three-year period, Homekey has funded projects that will provide housing security to more than 163,000 Californians over the decades to come,” said State HCD Director Gustavo Velasquez. “This program has allowed jurisdictions to get creative with adaptive reuse of existing spaces, and with providing a full array of services that help make homelessness rare, one time, and non-recurrent.”
Homekey projects are part of the City’s approach to address homelessness by innovatively leveraging City dollars to maximize State and Federal investment to create more deeply affordable Permanent Supportive Housing units. With this latest award, Oakland has secured more than $95 million of State Homekey funds since 2020 to house residents experiencing homelessness. The City’s eight awarded Homekey projects will provide a total of 427 deeply affordable units for the unhoused. Oakland’s other awarded Homekey projects include:
- Clifton Hall, a former dormitory that offers 63 units for seniors and families;
- Inn at Temescal, a repurposed motel with 21 units for veterans;
- Project Reclamation, a series of scattered single-family homes throughout Oakland for families and individuals;
- Piedmont Place, a repurposed motel with 44 units;
- Inn by the Coliseum, a repurposed motel with 36 units;
- Kingdom Builders Transitional Housing, a repurposed motel with 34 transitional units for homeless youth and formerly incarcerated residents; and
- Imperial Inn, a repurposed motel that will over 47 permanent supportive housing units.
The latest Homekey award follows additional awards from the State of California within the past 12 months, including a $40.7 million IIGC award, a $2.39 million grant from the State’s Prohousing Incentive Pilot Program, and a $10 million Regional Early Action Planning (REAP) grant.
Homelessness and housing affordability are top priorities for Oakland residents. To address these challenges, the City is carrying out a multi-pronged approach. The Housing and Community Development Department is addressing housing affordability issues through its “3P” framework: Protect Oaklanders from displacement; Preserve the existing affordable housing stock; and Produce new, deeply affordable housing units.
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