Mercy Housing California’s Caroline Severance Manor in Los Angeles lives up to its namesake, the suffragist who worked for social change in the late 1800s and early 1900s.
The 85-unit development, which started lease-up in March, is providing one-, two-, three-, and four-bedroom units for low-income families; households in which children are cared for by a relative other than their parents; the chronically homeless; and individuals with mental illness, all in a service-enriched environment.
In addition to providing the housing, the development team worked with neighboring First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles, which Severance and her husband founded, to build a new, 5,000-square-foot, licensed child-care facility to replace the outdated one the church had built in the 1960s.
Mercy Housing California will provide on-site services and help link residents to what’s available in the neighborhood, including after-school programs, a food bank, and a community garden.
“This development is a testament to the legacy of Ms. Severance,” says Ben Phillips, regional vice president of Mercy Housing California.
Phillips says the linchpin for the $32.6 million development was Mental Health Services Act funding from the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health.
Financing also included a permanent loan and low-income housing tax credit equity from Wells Fargo Bank and funding from the city.
