The Los Angeles Post

California Invests $757 Million to Create Affordable Housing and Clean Transportation

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Investment will create more than 2,500 affordable homes, 150 zero-emissions buses, and over 50 miles of new bikeways

In total, projects will reduce 800,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, equal to removing 178,000 gas-powered cars off California’s roads for one year
WHY IT MATTERS: As cities around the country wrestle with how to rebuild communities, California is moving forward with a vision for the state’s future, investing more than $750 million to create more affordable housing and clean transportation. Today’s announcement is part of Governor Gavin Newsom’s call to make coordinated investments that advance the state’s housing and climate goals while attracting additional federal and private funds into our communities.

SACRAMENTO — Today, Governor Newsom, along with the California Strategic Growth Council announced $757 million in funding to advance the building of affordable housing in jobs-rich, walkable neighborhoods. This investment will create more than 2,500 affordable homes, 150 new zero-emissions buses, over 50 miles of new bikeways, and improve miles of sidewalks in communities across the state. Once constructed, the projects will reduce 800,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, equivalent to taking 178,000 gas-powered cars off California’s roads for one year.
What Governor Newsom said: “California is reimagining communities around the state to address the ways our cities are changing – adapting to climate change and confronting housing scarcity. These investments will help cut carbon pollution and build more affordable housing as we look forward to a clean energy future.”

“As we consider the billions in federal funding on the table, today’s investment not only provides safe and affordable housing and transportation options, but also attracts additional dollars that stimulate local economies and create jobs,” said Lynn von Koch-Liebert, Executive Director of the California Strategic Growth Council. “We would like to thank our partners, including our Council, the Governor, and HCD and CARB for their partnership in creating a proven model for climate-friendly homes and thriving communities.”

“We are working across state government to make life-long investments in people and places, and this latest round of awards does just that,” said Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency Secretary Lourdes Castro Ramírez. “With over $757 million in funding to over 16 communities, we are building stable and affordable places to live with access to jobs, transit, parks and places where veterans, older Californians and families with children can prosper.”

“I am proud of the cross-departmental collaboration to make these awards that will result in over 2,500 new climate-friendly affordable homes across the state,” said California Department of Housing & Community Development Director Gustavo Velasquez. “These new homes will serve as a foundation of opportunity for the individuals and families living in them and will add more walking, biking, and transit infrastructure that will benefit the entire community.”

“California has been a leader in advancing cleaner transportation options, while also advancing solutions that make it easier for people to avoid the need for a car trip,” said California Air Resources Board Chair Liane Randolph. “The state’s investments in affordable, climate-friendly housing options and in zero-emissions, non-vehicle travel such as walking and biking are part of the path toward a clean air future for California.”

Today’s announcement is funded through the Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities (AHSC) Program. AHSC is a part of California Climate Investments, a statewide initiative that puts billions of cap-and-trade dollars to work reducing greenhouse gas emissions, strengthening the economy, and improving public health and the environment – particularly in disadvantaged communities. The program is a partnership between the California Strategic Growth Council, California Department of Housing and Community Development, and California Air Resources Board.

In the last round alone, AHSC-funded developments leveraged a total of $2.4 billion in additional local, state, federal, and private investments, catalyzing investment into climate-friendly communities.

This announcement will bring the total funding through AHSC to over $3 billion, making it the state’s largest funding source for affordable housing in California. Since its inception, the program has contributed to the development of 17,000 affordable homes and thousands of transportation improvement projects. Overall, these projects have reduced 5 million metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions, equivalent to taking 11 million gas-powered cars off California’s roads for one year.

California has enacted some of the nation’s most aggressive climate measures in history and is advancing a $52 billion multi-year commitment to implement a world-leading agenda to achieve carbon neutrality, protect communities from harmful oil drilling, and deliver 90% clean energy by 2035.