Ventura County cities commit $700,000 in support of affordable housing

Housing Trust Fund Ventura County (Housing Trust Fund VC) secured regional support as four cities in Ventura County have allocated $700,000 in funding over 2025 and 2026 towards Housing Trust Fund VC’s Revolving Loan Fund. The four cities are Moorpark, Ventura, Fillmore, and Santa Paula. These commitments are a demonstration of each city’s dedication to housing affordability for all residents in Ventura County and trust in Housing Trust Fund VC’s vision for the future of affordable housing. Since 2013, all ten cities in Ventura County have pledged or contributed to Housing Trust Fund VC or their sister organization, Housing Land Trust Ventura County.

Each of the four cities have pledged their support in their upcoming budgets. These contributions include: $200,000 from Moorpark in its 2024/2025 budget; $200,000 from Ventura over two budgetary years (2024/2025 and 2025/2026); $100,000 from Fillmore over two years (2025/2026 and 2026/2027); and $200,000 from Santa Paula over the same two-year period. In total the $700,000 in multi-year funding signals an effort among Ventura County cities to address the region’s housing shortage. With housing costs outpacing incomes for many residents, local governments are recognizing the economic and social impact of investing in affordable housing development.

These recent financial commitments build on a broader pattern of municipal support across Ventura County, where cities are increasingly leveraging public assets, like land donations, to advance long-term affordable housing solutions. By donating land to Housing Land Trust VC, cities are helping to eliminate one of the largest development costs, making projects more financially feasible and permanently affordable, while signaling public commitment that helps unlock further investment. In 2022, the City of Thousand Oaks committed to donate 3.87 acres of land at 384 N. Erbes Road, which will become Hillcrest Homes, 78 affordable for-sale townhomes developed by People Self-Help Housing and built by McCarthy Companies. Similarly, the City of Oxnard contributed a parcel of land in 2021 valued at $840,000 at 241 W. Second Street for the creation of Casa de Carmen and the Navigation Center, a supportive housing development that will provide 55 permanent housing units, 120 shelter beds and 24-hour supportive services for the homeless population by the end of 2025.
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“We’re grateful to these cities for recognizing the role the Revolving Loan Fund plays in making affordable housing possible now and long-term through continued investment. Their support strengthens our ability to provide early funding for developers and reflects a shared commitment to keeping Ventura County livable for all, because everyone deserves a home.” said Housing Trust Fund VC and Housing Land Trust VC CEO, Linda Braunschweiger.