Santa Cruz Homeless Services Center buys Victorian home to use as affordable housing

The outside of the Victorian home at 801 River St. will stay the same, but the inside will serve a new purpose.

The house at the corner of River and Coral streets has been vacant for 20 years, but come 2020, that will change.

Sibley Simon, founder of the local non-profit New Way Homes, got in contact with the owner who said they were looking to sell.

The location is right across the street from the Homeless Services Center.

Simon, who also serves on the board for the Homeless Services Center, said it didn’t take long for everyone else to see the potential.

The executive director of the center, Philip Kramer, said “We think it’s ideal for us and gives us a chance to dip our toe in the continuum of going from crisis to being in shelter to housing that we haven’t done so far.”

This is the first time the Homeless Services Center will serve as a landlord of a property, but it thought: What better place to start than right next door?

The house will be getting a new foundation and interior, but will keep its outside character. “They’re going to be one-bedroom or studio units but complete with their own bathroom or kitchen so they’re real rental units. This is long term permanent supportive housing. Tenants will have leases and stay for as long as this is good housing for them.”

If all goes well, the board said, it doesn’t think this will be its last purchase. “We know how to get folks out of homelessness. We need to prevent homelessness and one of the ways to do that as a community is: Say yes to more housing in the right locations with density.”

This project is completely funded by private loans and the center will ultimately choose who gets to live there.

“Many people are homeless and, families who are homeless, we want to help them get housing out in the community, move on successfully with their life, but a few folks who really need the daily help that can be provided here, so it’s the perfect location for that,” said Simon.

The Homeless Services Center expects the home to be ready for tenants to move in sometime next year.