SAN DIEGO — The San Diego City Council voted unanimously April 11 to award Father Joe’s Villages a $4-million Community Development Block Grant to build a new affordable-housing development to help alleviate the homelessness crisis.
The grant will be used to fund land-acquisition costs for the future housing community, which will be located at 17th and Commercial Streets and is expected to be completed in 2026. It will provide 107 units of affordable housing in proximity to Father Joe’s Villages’ comprehensive services.
This community will bring Father Joe’s Villages closer to its goal of providing 2,000 units of affordable housing in San Diego through the Turning the Key initiative. Other communities, such as St. Teresa of Calcutta Villa, have already helped hundreds of individuals, families and veterans leave homelessness.
As the crisis grows, housing remains a critical component to supporting the health and safety of the homeless.
“The growing homelessness crisis in San Diego is, at its core, a housing issue,” said Deacon Jim Vargas, president and CEO of Father Joe’s Villages. “Together, we can address this crisis head-on with new affordable housing and by offering communities like this, which represent a tangible hope for the most vulnerable among us.”
