OAKLAND, CA - BRIDGE Housing and the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco (FHLBank San Francisco) hosted an event on Tuesday celebrating the grand opening of St. Joseph Senior Apartments and groundbreaking for the new Terraza Palmera at St. Joseph's Family Apartments in Oakland's Fruitvale District.
Both projects were developed by BRIDGE Housing and each received Affordable Housing Program (AHP) grants from FHLBank San Francisco. The $67.7 million St. Joseph's Senior Apartments project restored a historic convalescent home to create 84 affordable rental units. The second phase of the project, Terraza Palmera at St. Joseph's, will produce 62 multi-family units.
"I want to thank the BRIDGE Housing, FHLBank San Francisco, and the other stakeholders for their commitment to improving housing access for residents of Oakland," said Rep. Barbara Lee (CA-9). "This groundbreaking development is expected to trigger redevelopment in the community while also providing affordable housing for seniors and the families who will reside in this transformative, multi-generational housing campus."
BRIDGE Housing President and CEO Cynthia A. Parker called the FHLBank San Francisco's AHP program "a critical tool that helps us produce affordable homes for working families and seniors. We're pleased that the Bank's investment in St. Joseph's will continue to have lasting value in the community."
St. Joseph's Senior Apartments was awarded a $415,000 AHP grant in 2008; St. Joseph's Family Apartments was awarded a $610,000 AHP grant in 2010. The affordable senior apartments are now completed and fully occupied, while construction of the family apartments is in progress. Other funders include: US Bank, Union Bank, City of Oakland, City of Oakland Redevelopment Agency, and the State of California Multifamily Housing Program.
"FHLBank San Francisco is please to make this contribution that will help provide affordable housing in this community," said Kevin Blackburn, assistant vice president at FHLBank San Francisco. "Our AHP program is helping communities throughout Arizona, California, and Nevada, and other regions served by our member banks, to expand the supply of affordable housing."
The AHP provides grants to assist in the purchase, construction, or rehabilitation of single-family and multifamily housing for low-income and moderate-income households. Grants are awarded through a competitive application process: the Bank's member financial institutions, working in partnership with community-based housing sponsors or developers, submit applications for specific projects twice a year. Since the program's inception in 1990, FHLBank San Francisco has awarded over $700 million in grants, which have assisted in the development of more than 100,000 units of quality affordable housing.
"The AHP program is more important than ever before," said Mr. Blackburn. "As the nation deals with a slow economic recovery, and individuals and families still face foreclosures and lower property values, the AHP is helping to provide funding for affordable housing projects that will make a difference in many urban and rural communities."
The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco delivers low-cost funding and other services that help member financial institutions make home mortgages to people of all income levels and provide credit that supports neighborhoods and communities. The Bank also funds community investment programs that help members create affordable housing and promote economic development. The Bank's members—its shareholders and customers—are headquartered in Arizona, California, and Nevada. Members may include commercial banks, credit unions, industrial loan companies, savings institutions, insurance companies, and community development financial institutions.