Keeler Court has brought 71 new affordable homes and communitywide transit improvements to San Diego’s Southcrest neighborhood.
Developed by Community HousingWorks (CHW), the property delivers needed studio, one-, two-, and three-bedroom homes for households earning up to 60% of the area median income. Seven units are reserved for formerly homeless veterans supported by VASH vouchers.
That alone is significant, but the project has multiple impacts, says Mary Jane Jagodzinski, senior vice president at the nonprofit. Bringing new life to an underutilized vacant lot, the project is a source of community revitalization in its neighborhood, a federally designated Promise Zone, she says.
Keeler Court is also the first San Diego development to receive funding from the state Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities (AHSC) program, which supports affordable housing and transportation infrastructure projects to create healthy communities. As part of the funding, CHW in partnership with SANDAG will construct new bike lanes and purchased two low-emission buses for the local transit agency.
In another move, CHW also instituted several steps to exceed its diversity, equity, and inclusion goals for its contractors, creating a model for the organization’s future projects, says Rosalind Ross, senior project manager.
The development, which recently recognized as new construction project of the year by the San Diego Housing Federation, features a large community space, where residents have access to a range of services targeting financial fitness and next generation success.
In addition to the AHSC funds, the $40 million developed utilized low-income housing tax credits and bonds.
