St. Michael’s

RIVERSIDE, CA

Goal: To serve as a model for addressing the City’s homeless population, contribute to the City’s goal of creating additional affordable housing, and maximize the use of the church-owned land while meeting both the City’s public needs and the church’s commitment to service.

The project will provide 50 one- and two- bedroom rental units in two adjoining two‐story walk-up-style buildings. The land for the building will be leased from St. Michael’s Episcopal Church. The low two‐story design with ample setbacks and parking evokes a mission-style layout allowing residents to enjoy open space within the site. The housing development is configured as two adjoining residential buildings, integrating the supportive housing units with the other affordable units. The residential units are connected to the on-site property management office and property manager’s unit. Adequate spaces for programming, designed in partnership with service providers to accommodate their needs, are provided and include private case management offices with room for individual and group meetings.

Additionally, the newly designed St. Michael’s site will provide a variety of outdoor community spaces ranging from more public to more private and designed to serve the different emotional and social places residents experience while they live here. Amenities designed to promote interaction among residents include a courtyard area, gathering circle, and play area. In addition, Seeds of Hope and the Church have developed a plan for an urban farm on site, utilizing edible landscaping, native plants, and a community garden to promote sustainable, healthy living. Produce grown onsite will be a resource for meals prepared in the onsite commercial kitchen where residents can learn basic cooking skills. As part of the comprehensive repositioning of the existing site, a new friary, chapel and parish hall will be added. The additional structures have been thoughtfully designed to seamlessly integrate with the housing and provide opportunities for church programs to have a positive influence on the residents and the community.

The St. Michael’s development will enhance the neighborhood by beautifying the site and maximizing a currently underutilized, partially vacant property on which the existing church sits. This project will help fill a growing need for permanent housing opportunities for Riverside’s homeless population by providing fifty new affordable units, twenty-four designated for those experiencing homelessness, among a diverse array of amenities, open spaces and services. The site is located within close proximity to additional public, social and health service providers. The site is also well served by public transit with access along both Jackson and California Streets, further connecting residents to the services designed to help them maintain stability and wellness in their lives.

DEVELOPMENT

Funding for St. Michael’s includes 4% LIHTCs and tax-exempt bonds. NPLH (No Place Like Home) Funds provide a permanent source of financing administered through the State of California Department of Housing and Community Development. Additionally, the City of Riverside awarded St. Michael’s a $2 million loan and the Housing Authority of the County of Riverside (HARC) awarded St Michael’s 24 Project-Based Section 8 Vouchers to house homeless and chronically homeless individuals.

DATA
  • Number of units: 50
  • Lot size: 3.58 acres
  • Density: 14 units/acre
  • Unit size: 500-675 ft2
  • Unit mix: 29 1 BD, 21 2 BD
  • Parking Spaces: 81
  • Affordability: 30%/60%/80% AMI
  • Sustainability: LEED Certified
  • Total Cost: $19.7M
TEAM
  • Contractor: Precision General Commercial Contractors, Inc.
  • Architect: Escher GuneWardena
  • Non-Profit General Partner: Mercy House
  • Property Management: FPI Management
WEBSITE

PARTNERS

Mercy House Living Centers will be the lead services provider for St. Michael’s housing. The lead services provider will deliver high quality supportive services that are designed to help families and individuals maintain stable housing and generate positive changes in their lives. Riverside University Health System is also providing behavioral health services designated specifically for California’s No Place Like Home (NPLH) tenants.

At St. Michael’s, the supportive services provision will be based on Housing First principals coupled with ongoing education and supportive services that focus on homeless or formerly homeless individuals’ assessed needs. Trauma informed care and motivational interviewing strategies allow staff to address the individual’s identified needs, allowing trust and rapport to develop. Regular availability and visibility onsite will reduce the barrier of connecting to a service provider as needed and reduce lengthy time lapses to connecting to services. Supportive services will be designed to focus on intensive case management, with emphasis on behavioral health and primary health issues, independent living skills, and employment and/or educational goals. Intensive case management includes individualized service planning and goal setting, coordination of services, counseling and support, crisis intervention, intensive assistance with accessing mainstream services and other community-based resources.

Additional services are provided by Seeds of Hope and St. Michael’s Episcopal Church.

Mercy House

For over 25 years, Mercy House has provided supportive services and comprehensive resident services to families, individuals, homeless, chronically homeless, and disabled individuals in Orange County. Mercy House staff has extensive knowledge of needs and barriers faced by the families and chronically homeless in our community, and they utilize a variety of resources and service coordination partnerships imperative to their success.

Riverside County: Riverside University Health System – Behavioral Health

RUHS provides community-based services for adults and children with mental health and substance use challenges that are delivered in settings that are friendly, accessible and sensitive to different cultural and language needs. RUHS builds partnerships with individuals and families that promote a recovery-focused, person-first approach that helps each person reach his or her fullest potential. Each year, RUHS’s behavioral health services reach more than 50,000 people across Riverside County through their wellness, mental health and prevention programs.

Seeds of Hope

Seeds of Hope is a ministry of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles which seeks to help congregations, communities, and schools turn unused land into productive gardens and orchards to provide healthy and fresh food in areas of need across the region. Through garden workshops, nutrition education, and with creative collaboration with Churches, they are working to cultivate wellness to create stronger, healthier communities.