On the morning of September 15th, 2021, we gathered with a lot of friends and partners for the groundbreaking of Agrihood; a development which will provide 361 new homes – including 181 below-market rate homes for seniors and senior veterans. Read the press release here and see the rendering of the Agrihood project.
Agrihood was years in the making and had a lot of people come together over a long period of time – a fact brought up by every speaker at the event. Santa Clara Mayor Lisa Gilmor spoke of the numerous challenges that faced the project but also the creative ways the challenges were overcome.
“We are grateful for the Bay Area employers and philanthropic institutions who invested in our TECH Fund making this early stage, predevelopment financing possible. Being part of the affordable housing solution isn’t an abstract idea. Because of this work, someone is going to live in each and every one of the homes being built here, and their lives are going to change for the better because they will have a place to call their own.”
Noni Ramos, Chief Executive Officer, Housing Trust Silicon Valley
Housing Trust was the first organization to provide pre-development funding for the project – some of which came from our TECH Fund – while Santa Clara County’s 2016 Measure A affordable housing bond played a critical role to bring Agrihood to today.
Chris Neale, President of The Core Companies, spoke of the pride he has in the Agrihood development and cited the influence his father, David Neale, who created The Core Companies forty years ago and addressed him from the podium:
“You lead by example, you provide the space for us to reach high, and the support for us to do it. Without your guidance and leadership we wouldn’t be here today.”
The applause of the touching moment was matched moments later when Chris mentioned that affordable housing projects like Agrihood shouldn’t take this long to go from concept to groundbreaking, and we should all take pride in the work we all do in affordable housing and continuously strive to do even better.
Click here to download today’s press release from The Core Companies
Click here for more information about Housing Trust Silicon Valley’s TECH Fund
Click here for more information about Santa Clara County’s Measure A Affordable Housing Bond
