OAKLAND, Calif. (March 5, 2020) – A $4.8 million equity investment from the Housing for Health Fund (HFHF) will enable an Oakland nonprofit to rehabilitate and preserve the affordability of a 33-unit apartment building in the Chinatown neighborhood while incorporating new features designed to improve resident health. The closing marks the third investment from the HFHF, an $85 million collaboration among Enterprise Community Partners (Enterprise), Kaiser Permanente and JPMorgan Chase, as well as the Fund’s second equity investment with East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC).
“Housing for Health Fund investments are designed to ensure that Bay Area residents can continue to live in their communities by preserving properties threatened by market pressures and stabilizing neighborhoods,” said Heather Hood, vice president and Northern California market leader at Enterprise. “Seismic retrofits to the building will make apartments safer and customized Health Action Plans will help improve resident health and wellbeing.”
The acquisition and rehabilitation of the property will preserve affordability in an area where costs continue to rise. Research through Enterprise’s Opportunity360 tool found that 53 percent of low-income households in the neighborhood pay more than half their income in rent, 36 percent of residents live in poverty and 15 percent are unemployed. Residents will be surveyed about their health needs and the building will engage a public health professional to design a Health Action Plan (HAP) to make recommendations for ways to improve the overall health and wellbeing of residents who live at the property.
HFHF focuses its investments on more than a dozen Bay Area and northern California counties. Since it launched in 2019, the Fund has cumulatively invested $23 million to support the preservation of 582 homes in the region.
“Homelessness and the lack of affordable housing are creating a public health crisis across the nation, particularly in the Bay Area,” said Bechara Choucair, MD, chief health officer for Kaiser Permanente. “Given our understanding that stable housing is fundamental to a person’s ability to achieve and maintain good health, we are thrilled to support the preservation of another affordable multifamily property in Oakland, improving lives and strengthening our community.”
The three-story multifamily property was constructed in 1914 and includes 10 studios, 15 one-bedroom apartments and eight two-bedroom apartments, along with green features including rooftop solar panels. The building is located within walking distance to local restaurants, parks and schools and is a 2-minute walk from the Lake Merritt BART station.
EBALDC CEO Joshua Simon noted that, “By purchasing existing buildings and stabilizing rents for low and very low-income residents, we can ensure that the diverse mixed-income neighborhoods that make Oakland special can continue to thrive. It takes many years to build new affordable housing and we must act quickly to stabilize the communities that exist today. If we do not continue to act now, the culture and creativity that we love here will be lost.”
As apartments come available, they will be reserved for households earning 80 percent or less of the Area Median Income (AMI) and rents will also be restricted to 80 percent AMI levels.
“Affordable housing is critical to build thriving neighborhoods, yet the Bay Area’s tremendous growth has put this out of reach for too many residents,” said Amy Wallace, vice president, Global Philanthropy, JPMorgan Chase. “We are proud to work with HFHF and our partners to address the serious challenges of displacement and affordability as part of our $75 million commitment to the Bay Area. HFHF investments, such as this apartment building in Oakland, will help ensure that more people can remain in their neighborhoods, participate in the local economy and benefit from the region’s growth.”
The total development cost is estimated at $10.3 million. The building will be retrofitted to ensure it is resilient and safe for residents in the event of an earthquake, as well as to provide exterior and interior repairs, including replacing fences, refurbishing the laundry facility, replacing appliances and flooring and fitting new kitchen and bathroom fixtures over time.
About the Housing for Health Fund
The Housing for Health Fund is an $85 million collaboration among Enterprise Community Partners, Kaiser Permanente and JPMorgan Chase. The fund will serve a dozen Bay Area counties, with half of the capital designated to promote health and the preservation of affordable homes in the city of Oakland.
About Enterprise Community Partners
Enterprise is a proven and powerful nonprofit that improves communities and people’s lives by making well-designed homes affordable and connected to opportunity. As a social enterprise, we bring together the nationwide know-how, policy leadership, partners, donors and investors to multiply the impact of local affordable housing development. Over more than 35 years, Enterprise has created 585,000 homes, invested more than $43 billion and touched millions of lives.
About East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation
East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation is a nonprofit community development organization celebrating 45 years of bringing people and resources together to build healthy, vibrant and safe neighborhoods where everyone has a place to call home. They partner with residents and local leaders to co-create neighborhood solutions so everyone plays a role in shaping their future and strengthening their community fabric so people can connect with each other and grow together. EBALDC is one of the region’s leading affordable housing developers and serves more than 6,000 people annually. For more information, visit www.ebaldc.org. On Twitter @EBALDC
About Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, Kaiser Permanente has a mission to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve 12.2 million members in eight states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal Permanente Medical Group physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health.
About JPMorgan Chase & Co.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is a leading global financial services firm with assets of $2.7 trillion and operations worldwide. The Firm is a leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers and small businesses, commercial banking, financial transaction processing, and asset management. A component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, JPMorgan Chase & Co. serves millions of customers in the United States and many of the world's most prominent corporate, institutional and government clients under its J.P. Morgan and Chase brands. Information about JPMorgan Chase & Co. is available at www.jpmorganchase.com.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. has been serving the Bay Area for more than 130 years and continues to grow there, nearly doubling its branches over the last 10 years and employing nearly 3,000 people locally. The firm is committing $75 million and advancing local policy solutions over five years to drive inclusive growth and help tackle affordability challenges in the Bay Area as part of the firm’s AdvancingCities initiative. In addition to opening the Chase Center, the firm is working with local partners to equip workers with critical job skills, provide capital and expertise that women and minority entrepreneurs need to grow their businesses, invest in new affordable housing models and locally-driven solutions to promoting thriving neighborhoods, and help families build strong financial futures. More information about JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s investments in the Bay Area is available here.
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