Burbank Boulevard Senior Housing brings permanent supportive housing to Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley. Developed by Mercy Housing California in part to address the surge in senior homelessness in the area, the project provides 54 apartments for residents 55 and older. In addition, 26 of the units are dedicated to serving residents with mental illness.
Opening in September 2023, the community provides critical on-site services and case management for residents through The People Concern as well as project-based vouchers so they pay no more than 30% of their income for rent. Residents also receive a full set of kitchen, bathroom, and bedroom soft goods to help ensure a smooth transition as well as a green communities welcome basket.
Additional amenities include drought-tolerant landscaping and roof deck garden. Universal design elements also are incorporated throughout the development, providing accessible and equitable living spaces for residents.
“It’s a place that tenants are going to call home,” says Erika Villablanca, director of real estate development at Mercy Housing California. “Being able to have that place where they can age in place and know that they have access to resources and access to someone who is going to hold their hand and literally walk them through the process of having a home is really important.”
The $30.9 million development is in the amenity-rich and affluent Sherman Oaks neighborhood, close to public transit, medical facilities, grocery stores, a senior center, and a library.
Villablanca notes a comprehensive community engagement process was vital in Burbank Boulevard’s success. Mercy Housing California met with neighbors, sometimes in their homes; local leaders; and other stakeholders to hear suggestions and concerns. It also partnered with coUrbanize, a technology platform that breaks down barriers to public participation in the real estate development process, to engage with the neighborhood residents with limited English proficiency and those who faced barriers to attending in-person public hearings or community meetings. This gave the neighborhood a one-stop shop for all information related to the development.
