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A rendering shows plans for affordable senior apartments at the intersection of Harmon and King streets in South Berkeley. Credit: Kodama Diseno Architects<\/p>\nA rendering shows plans for affordable senior apartments at the intersection of Harmon and King streets in South Berkeley. Credit: Kodama Diseno Architects<\/p>\n
Two affordable housing developments in Berkeley will get a $15 million boost from a sales tax Alameda County voters approved in 2020.<\/p>\n
The Board of Supervisors last week signed off on a plan to spend<\/a> $53 million in total on 10 projects around the county, among them supportive housing at People\u2019s Park and affordable senior apartments on the property of a South Berkeley church<\/a>.<\/p>\n The money comes from Measure W<\/a>, which increased the county\u2019s sales tax by 0.5% for 10 years. Measure W was held up for years by a lawsuit filed by the Alameda County Taxpayers Association, which sought to void the measure and prevent the county from collecting and using the tax money. After the legal matter was resolved, county officials decided last summer to use 80% of the funds on homeless programs<\/a> and housing, and the rest on other \u201cessential services.\u201d<\/p>\n While it was stuck in court the sales tax increase was still applied to purchases, and Measure W brought in $810 million, which the county held in escrow.<\/p>\n The People\u2019s Park development<\/a>, slated to receive $8.1 million from Measure W, calls for building about 100 affordable and supportive apartments on the epicenter of Berkeley\u2019s counterculture movement. UC Berkeley tapped Satellite Affordable Housing Associates to lead that piece of the project<\/a> last December, after its prior affordable housing developer backed out in 2023. Crews are currently\u00a0 constructing a 1,100-bed student housing complex at the park.<\/p>\n South Berkeley\u2019s Ephesian Church of God in Christ has partnered with the affordable builder Community Housing Development Corporation of North Richmond on a plan to construct two five-story buildings along Harmon, Ellis and King streets. The buildings would have a total of 79 apartments for seniors who are considered low-income or very low-income. The development news site SF YIMBY reported Community Housing Development Corporation filed for building permits last week<\/a> to begin demolition work for the project, which will replace the church\u2019s parking lots and a vacant building.<\/p>\n The project is slated to receive $7 million through Measure W.<\/p>\n Berkeley mayor: \u2018We are making meaningful progress\u2019<\/p>\n \u201cThanks to the outstanding work of our community partners and city staff, and the strong support of Alameda County Supervisor Nikki Fortunado Bas, we are making meaningful progress in addressing homelessness in our community by creating the stable, permanent, supportive housing people need,\u201d Berkeley Mayor Adena Ishii wrote in a statement Friday. \u201cThis is what collaboration and sustained investment can achieve for Berkeley.\u201d<\/p>\n Last week\u2019s board action provided funding for another five affordable housing developments in Oakland, as well as projects in Livermore, Newark and Alameda.<\/p>\n Altogether, the funding supports 946 new affordable housing units, including 310 for formerly homeless people. Another $3.7 million will go toward administrative costs.\u00a0So far, the county has spent $146 million in homelessness funds from Measure W, according to a county spokesperson.<\/p>\n