Ventura County Updates: Area Housing Authority Awarded $17M & CEDC Celebrates the Grand Opening of Azahar Place

(from Ventura County HOME) Area Housing Authority Awarded $17M for Two Ventura County Properties - Despite a competitive environment for funding, The Area Housing Authority of the County of Ventura (AHA) received funding for two projects. Recent letters from the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee awarded the AHA $5.4 million in tax credit funding to assist with renovation at Colinas Vista Family Apartments in Piru, and $11.6 million to aid the construction of a 36-unit development  in Thousand Oaks. Both developments target extremely low and very low income households (30% - 50% area median income). The 36-unit development of family homes in Thousand Oaks is expected to break ground in March 2013. In accordance with tax credit guidelines, the property will feature water and energy saving elements, water efficient landscaping and solar panels. Construction is scheduled to take between 14 and 18 months to complete. Piru's Colina Vista Family Apartments, opened in 1995, features 30 three-bedroom and 5 four-bedroom units and is centrally located near schools, work and services in the unincorporated area of the County. Improvements in energy efficiency, structural repairs, and interior renovations are scheduled to be completed by late 2013.

CEDC Celebrates the Grand Opening of Azahar Place- The Cabrillo Economic Development Corporation (CEDC) celebrated the grand opening of Azahar Place, an affordable rental property located at 11370 Mimosa Street in East Ventura on November 30, 2012. This 60-apartment complex for low-income families is the first LEED for Homes certified development in the City of Ventura. Perhaps the greatest attainment by CEDC for this community is having successfully reached the LEED® for Homes Platinum level of certification established by the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) for achievement in green homebuilding and design. LEED-certified homes complete a technically rigorous process that often includes a home energy (HERS) rating and onsite inspections to verify that the home is built to be energy efficient and environmentally sound. "Achieving the LEED for Homes Platinum certification is a tremendous accomplishment by our Real Estate Development and Construction team," says Nancy Conk, CEDC's Chief Executive Officer. "This designation is difficult to achieve, but we are proud to have earned the ranking and it underscores CEDC's commitment to green-building, reducing our carbon footprint wherever possible and providing energy-efficient homes for the low-income individuals who live in our state-of-the-art apartment homes." Azahar Place is professionally managed on-site by CEDC's Property and Asset Management Division. CEDC's Community Building and Neighborhood Revitalization Division will facilitate community enrichment activities for the residents, as well as the formation of a tenant council.

(As part of the statewide efforts to build stronger regional affordable housing networks, SCANPH will be now providing monthly updates from all of the regions in Southern California.)