With our free press under threat and federal funding for public media gone, your support matters more than ever. Help keep the LAist newsroom strong, become a monthly member or increase your support today.
California's cap-and-trade program funds affordable housing
Cap-and-trade money will fund 82 apartment units at MacArthur Park Apartments which will have access to the Metro station serving the Red and Purple lines.
(
Los Angeles Housing Partnership
)
Listen
0:48
California's cap-and-trade program funds affordable housing
The state's cap-and-trade program this year will provide $122 million in funding for affordable housing, including more than 800 new units in Southern California for lower-income residents.
The 28 winning projects are to be built to high energy-efficiency standards and will be located within a half mile of public transit stops.
California’s Strategic Growth Council, which picked the award recipients, said that's in keeping with the spirit of the cap-and-trade program that collects fees from polluting companies to put toward addressing climate change.
The housing projects will "reduce as much greenhouse gas as taking all the cars in Newport Beach and Citrus Heights up north off the road for a year," said Mike McCoy, the council's executive director.
Sponsored message
The council is expected to sign off on the grant recipients in a June 30 vote.
Cap-and-trade money is now the only source of continuous state funding for affordable housing. So-called redevelopment agencies were once tasked with spending about $1 billion a year on affordable housing. But beset by management woes and controversy, they were eliminated in 2011 by Governor Brown in a cost-cutting move. Affordable housing advocates have mourned the loss of those funds ever since.
"(Cap-and-trade) definitely helps, but it doesn't fill the hole," said Paul Beesemeyer, Southern California director for the non-profit California Housing Partnership.
Beesemeyer added the cap-and-trade program only has so much reach because projects must have ties to transit.
"Redevelopment had more flexibility to address broader community needs like blight," Beesemeyer said.
He also criticized the program for limiting how much money each region of the state could receive.
McCoy acknowledged that the program alone will not fix the state's shortage of affordable homes, but he said cap-and-trade money will improve the housing supply over time.
Sponsored message
McCoy said after this first year, about 20 percent of cap-and-trade funds will be dedicated to affordable housing — an amount estimated to increase to about $400 million next year.
McCoy added that state investment helps to leverage more private money for affordable housing projects.
"The banks really like state money being in the project," McCoy said. "It creates a lot of certainty. I always say, 'Our dollars are better than your dollars.'
- Recipients in Southern California include:
- 127th Street Apartments, Los Angeles, 85 units
- Anchor Place, Long Beach, 93 units
- Crenshaw Villas, LA, 50 units
- Depot at Santiago, Santa Ana, 70 units
- El Segundo Apartments, Los Angeles, 75 units
- MacArthur Park Apartments, LA, 82 units
- March Veterans Village, Riverside County, 138
- Mosaic Gardens at Westlake, 125 units
- Sylmar Court Apartments, 101 units
At LAist, we believe in journalism without censorship and the right of a free press to speak truth to those in power. Our hard-hitting watchdog reporting on local government, climate, and the ongoing housing and homelessness crisis is trustworthy, independent and freely accessible to everyone thanks to the support of readers like you.
But the game has changed: Congress voted to eliminate funding for public media across the country. Here at LAist that means a loss of $1.7 million in our budget every year. We want to assure you that despite growing threats to free press and free speech, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust. Speaking frankly, the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news in our community.
We’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission.
Thank you for your generous support and belief in the value of independent news.
But the game has changed: Congress voted to eliminate funding for public media across the country. Here at LAist that means a loss of $1.7 million in our budget every year. We want to assure you that despite growing threats to free press and free speech, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust. Speaking frankly, the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news in our community.
We’re asking you to stand up for independent reporting that will not be silenced. With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else. Become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission.
Thank you for your generous support and belief in the value of independent news.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
