Resources for Community Development

We recently had the opportunity to share the progress of Nellie Hannon Gateway with the dedicated board members, volunteers, and founders of ECAP including Ms. Nellie herself! ECAP, an Emeryville non-profit food assistance program, will have a new home on the ground floor of the development. Our team, including J.H. Fitzmaurice, Inc. and LPAS Architecture + Design, continues to work hard on Nellie Hannon Gateway! The wood framing of the 7th story is almost done with construction of the roof and solar photovoltaic panels will follow shortly after. In ECAP’s new space, interior walls are being framed and we are preparing to install storefront windows. We are excited to be on track to complete this 100% affordable housing community by next summer!

RCD staff had a wonderful time at the Oakland Ballers game last week! As a fellow local Bay Area organization, it was great to support a community-focused team built in Oakland. And of course, it was a pleasure to meet Scrappy the possum! ⚾

Our Policy Manager, Courtney Pal, testified yesterday at the State Assembly Utilities and Energy Committee in support of SB 1210. The bill from Senator Nancy Skinner would provide much-needed transparency into utility hookup fees and connection timelines. RCD’s testimony highlighted the importance of receiving utility connection scheduling estimates earlier in the development process. Currently, we aren’t told how long it will take to get a development connected to the grid until after the work is ready to be performed. Given that utilities like Pacific Gas and Electric Company are experiencing significant and persistent delays in energizing new developments, this uncertainty unfortunately results in disruption for families waiting to move in. For example, on RCD’s Maudelle Miller Shirek project, it will take PG&E almost four months to turn on the power – a delay that is simply unacceptable amid the state’s affordable housing crisis. Under SB 1210, PG&E and other utility companies would be required to post their connection timelines publicly online, giving advanced notice of workload delays and allowing us to mitigate their harm. Thank you to Senator Skinner for introducing and championing this bill!

NEW: RCD 2023 Impact Report is now available! Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gRq2pPHb As we celebrate our 40th anniversary, we are reflecting on our legacy and the impact of the homes we create and the services we provide. This report highlights our progress in creating more affordable homes with the programs that bolster this work, including our Community Development efforts, our new Policy and Advocacy Initiative, and our on-going commitment to advancing equity. We are thrilled to share our key achievements and highlights from the past year as we look forward - thank you to our supporters and partners who make this work possible!

We join 100+ orgs in calling on Gavin Newsom, Senate President Pro Tempore Senator McGuire and Speaker Rivas to pass the hashtag #CALeg budget proposal & restore funding for affordable housing & homelessness. CA cannot afford cuts to these critical programs including MHP, HHAP and LIHTC. You can find the full letter here: https://bit.ly/3VgdYPQ

Check out this profile of RCD's Community Development work! The profile focuses on the work that RCD and our many partners are doing to empower and organize residents in the Eden Area of unincorporated Alameda County.

As we come to a close of Affordable Housing Month in the San Francisco Bay, we want to share another cool project we worked with Cahill Contractors on in San Leandro, CA. Our Madrone Terrace project is a structural concrete podium which will be the base for the 79 unit Mid Rise project. 20 of those units will be specifically reserved for formerly unhoused families / individuals. We are more than happy to be contributing our part of helping create solutions for the unhoused here in the San Francisco Bay Area. We used a lot of the new Pro-Shore, LLC MAX / High Bay #6 post on this one! General Contractor - Cahill Contractors Client / Owner - Resources for Community Development Architect - Kava Massih Architects Structural Engineer - IMEG, formerly christopher consultants Another #excellenceplannedanddelivered project.

We had a great time sharing the progress of Maudelle Miller Shirek Community last week with stakeholders, the community, and members of Maudelle's family! Thanks to the work of Nibbi Brothers General Contractors and MWA Architects, Inc., the building is looking great and is set to open by early fall. As we reflect on another powerful Affordable Housing Month, we're reminded of the importance of bringing stable, affordable homes to the Bay Area. Soon this building, just steps away from Ashby BART, will be home to 200+ new residents. With a safe and stable home, residents will have access to new opportunities and the potential to change their lives and the lives of generations to come.

🚧 It’s official: Longfellow Corner in Oakland is starting construction! 🚧 Once completed in 2026, this 100% affordable housing community will create 77 new homes for low-income families and households transitioning out of homelessness. Located just blocks away from BART, the new building will transform a prominent corner from a vacant, blighted lot into service-enriched housing with community-serving commercial space. We began working on this exciting, transit-oriented development in 2017 and it took immense partnership and collaboration to reach this milestone. Thank you to our funders and partners which includes the City of Oakland, California Department of Housing & Community Development, California Department of Toxic Substances Control and U.S. Bank. A big thank you also to HKIT Architects for their early work as the design architect leading the conceptual planning and entitlement process. Thank you to our design and construction team, SVA Architects and Branagh Construction, led by our wonderful RCD team of Nicole Brown and Carolyn Bookhart!

Check out this progress of Bell St. Gardens in Fremont! This 100% affordable housing community will create 128 new apartments through the innovative approach of renovating an existing motel directly adjacent to a new construction building. Big thank you as always to our partners and our great team of James E. Roberts-Obayashi Corp. and Van Meter Williams Pollack (VMWP) - we can't wait to welcome residents next year!