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JORDAN DOWNS REVITALIZING HOMES AND LIVES IN LOS ANGELES THROUGH RAD

The Jordan Downs property, located in the Watts neighborhood of southern Los Angeles, California, was built in the 1940s as semi-permanent housing for war workers during World War II. In the early 1950s, Jordan Downs became public housing under the management of the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles (HACLA). While it provided an essential lifeline in a city with rapidly rising rental costs, as with many public housing properties of that age, the property outlived its useful life. In addition, it was isolated and lacked access to economic opportunities for its residents.

Following years of resident and community engagement, HACLA utilized HUD's Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) program and found a way to rebuild these homes, double the affordable housing, and reshape the surrounding community.

The Jordan Downs Project

Before HACLA began the project, the Jordan Downs community consisted of 700 units of public housing. At the end of the ten-year plan, the community will boast approximately 1,410 units, including a blend of RAD, other project-based voucher units, and some market-rate units. This will create a mixed-income neighborhood for residents while providing a greater number of affordable housing units than existed on-site originally.

The plan is being conducted over six phases using a “build first” process. “Build first” means the project prioritizes creating new units before the original units are demolished to minimize the disruption to residents. Residents never need to move off-site and will move just once to their brand-new home. To facilitate this, HACLA purchased 21 acres of land adjacent to the Jordan Downs property, expanding the space available for redeveloping the community.

Construction of Phase One of the Jordan Downs project focused on developing the 21 acres of purchased land. This phase began with construction of 250 units, which includes 70 units converted under RAD.

Building Homes and Creating Opportunities

An important aspect of the Jordan Downs project has been ensuring that 30 percent of the construction workforce comes from the Watts area, which leads to money being reinvested within the local community. Marlo Jones, a resident at Jordan Downs for 39 years, began working on- site in November 2017. He feels that having this opportunity to work on a project redeveloping the area where he was born and raised brings great satisfaction and pride. Not only is he improving the area for himself and other residents, but he is also gaining skills and work experience. “I didn’t know about how to use tools, construction terminology, measuring and digging right,” he said. Mr. Jones has been able to work on different parts of the project, gaining valuable experience.

“[This is] going to change the atmosphere of what we’re accustomed to—[this] community [is] known as being unprivileged—[it] will have a different look, be a different community.” —Marlo Jones, Resident

Residents’ PRIDE OF COMMUNITY

In 1968, Denise Richardson and her two young children moved into the Jordan Downs project. Over the years, her passion has always been to create a safe, clean community for all of the children who live there. She has been involved in multiple community groups to advance that goal. With a smile, Denise says, “I know all of the kids, all of their parents. I’ve got nieces, nephews, and cousins who live here.”

Ms. Richardson has served as a Block Captain to assist with property clean-ups, as a Motivated Mother to provide support to new mothers in Jordan Downs, and now as a Community Coach to educate her neighbors on the redevelopment process.

Now, Ms. Richardson has a new sense of pride in her home. Soon, Ms. Richardson will be able to host her three grandchildren in her new apartment. She plans to send photos of her in front of the new building to share with her son in Tulsa who was raised in Jordan Downs. Ms. Richardson is also excited about the new retail, community center, and parks. “It’s been a long time coming,” she said. “We are so elated that it's coming. At first, we didn’t believe it, but now it’s here!”

“That's the most beautiful thing. It's going to look like a neighborhood, a community. Let me tell you, Watts is worth it.” —Denise Richardson, Resident

THE JORDAN DOWNS COMMUNITY

As units are built and residents move into their new homes, the Jordan Downs property is also being redeveloped to increase public-use spaces. Phase One includes the development of a new community and recreation center that will house recreational, health, education, and social services for all ages. A new neighborhood park is being created through California’s Transformative Climate Communities program.

Shown: a community park completed in Phase One.

In addition, a new Jordan Downs Plaza, a 115,000 square foot retail center that is anchored by a grocery store and other shops, now provides residents with easier access to retail stores.

A highlight of the redevelopment of Jordan Downs is the extension of Century Boulevard through the area. The opening of the Boulevard’s extension was celebrated early in Phase One, and Century Boulevard is one of the first new streets constructed by the City in recent decades. The boulevard provides pedestrian- and bike-friendly areas and is located close to the Blue Line, LA’s most used light rail line.

The Transaction

What is RAD?

The Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) is a program of the Office of Recapitalization in the Office of Multifamily Housing Programs at HUD. Authorized by Congress under the Fiscal Year 2012 HUD Appropriations Act, RAD allows public housing agencies and owners of other HUD-assisted properties to convert units from their original sources of HUD financing to project-based Section 8 contracts. These new contracts provide a more reliable source of operating subsidy that enables property owners to leverage private and public capital, such as debt and equity, to finance new construction and/or rehabilitation of rental housing.

Credits:

All photos were provided by the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles for use with permission.