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| San Jose Mercury News | ||
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Feb. 26, 2004 It's always nice to see good work in Silicon Valley rewarded with kudos from outsiders -- particularly when the praise comes with a nice check for a good cause. Thank the Housing Trust of Santa Clara County for the latest round of attention and revenue, in this case from the state. The source of money was Proposition 46, a housing bond passed in 2002 that includes up to $2 million for any housing trust that provides matching funds. The county's trust -- unique as a public-private partnership -- raised $2.4 million for the match, despite the terrible economy. So state Business, Transportation and Housing Director Sunne Wright McPeak chose San Jose as the place to award all the state grants this week, presenting the county trust with its well-earned $2 million, but also handing checks to other Bay Area trusts. Some were founded in part because the Prop. 46 money was available. San Jose now has its own housing trust, for instance -- a smart move since redevelopment money that has funded the city's housing program is likely to be in shorter supply. San Mateo County, Alameda County, Palo Alto, Livermore and Santa Cruz also got grants. Prop. 46 mainly funds individual housing projects based on a rating formula. Early on, some feared the formula would work against the Bay Area because of our high costs. That has not turned out to be the case. Santa Clara County's new Office of Affordable Housing has helped bring in money for specific projects. Of six local developments that got Prop. 46 funding this year, three scored high partly because of county grants, according to Marjorie Matthews, who heads the office: $5.2 million from the county attracted more than $16 million from the state. Despite high unemployment, housing costs stay ridiculously
high here, and home ownership still eludes many working families. The
Valley's importance to the state economy makes this a statewide concern,
which is why Prop. 46 was so important -- and why Carl Guardino of the
Silicon Valley Manufacturing Group co-chaired the state campaign. It's
great to see the effort paying off. |
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