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Sunday, Mar 21, 2010
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Nonprofit partnership creates San Francisco housing for GLBT seniors |
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| Nonprofit partnership creates San Francisco housing for GLBT seniors | ||
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A coalition of business, non-profit and government organizations have come together in an innovative partnership to build the first affordable housing facilities that are expressly welcoming to San Francisco's LGBT seniors. Openhouse, a non-profit community-based organization founded ten years ago to provide housing, services and community programs for the City's large and growing LGBT senior population, has joined with private developer AF Evans and the Mayor's Office on Housing (MOH) to build a new facility at the former UC Extension site at 55 Laguna. Due to the City's willingness to partner with Openhouse, one hundred percent of the new senior facility will be housing defined as affordable according to City standards and available to individuals who are unable to access similar market-rate facilities due to the expense. The new building, which will have at least 88 units and perhaps more, will be part of a larger initiative by AF Evans, under an agreement with the University of California, to develop a new community of rental apartments on the site, publicly-accessible parks and gardens, and new retail and community services facilities. The building will also provide Openhouse with a new, permanent base of operations for its services. "Thanks to the commitment of so many wonderful people, Openhouse is realizing a dream today to significantly advance our mission by building affordable senior housing for our community's growing population of LGBT seniors," said Neil Sims, President of the Board of Directors of Openhouse. "The innovative partnership of business, government and non- profit organizations will ensure that our City's LGBT pioneers have a welcoming, safe and secure place in which to grow old while continuing to thrive within the community they've always called home." According to research conducted by Openhouse in 2004, San Francisco will have tens of thousands of LGBT seniors requiring a range of aging-related support beginning this year. LGBT seniors, even in a City as Gay-friendly as San Francisco, face a range of challenges that are unique to the community. These include a lack of traditional supports such as children and other family; lack of access to Social Security and other survivor benefits available to heterosexual couples; and institutional discrimination, among many others. While Openhouse already delivers a range of services and community programs, it is its housing initiative that will enable the organization to create a safe and vibrant environment for LGBT seniors as they age. The new facility at 55 Laguna also benefits from its proximity to the larger, diverse community envisioned for the site, the City's LGBT Community Center on Market and, of course, the Castro District "Today's announcement is the culmination of ten years of hard, determined work by many, many people dedicated to the belief that LGBT seniors deserve a dignified, supportive, accessible, safe and welcoming environment. I couldn't be more thrilled or proud than I am at this moment." said Openhouse co-founder and board member Dr. Marcy Adelman. An Openhouse press release |
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