State gives Mountain View $50M for housing, transit projects

In a windfall for Mountain View, the California Department of Housing and Community Development recently awarded the city $50 million to support an affordable housing project and transportation improvements on Middlefield Road.

The City Council authorized the city manager to accept the award last month with the bulk of the funding, $35 million, slated to go to the construction of a seven-story affordable apartment complex at 87 E. Evelyn Ave. The item was part of the council’s consent agenda, which is a collection of routine matters meant to be passed in a single vote.

“We all care a lot about housing,” Councilmember Pat Showalter said at the June 23 meeting. “We’ve been recognized as a pro-housing city, but this is the largest affordable housing grant that we’ve gotten.”

Last year, the city applied for the funding through the state’s Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities Program. The initiative seeks to integrate affordable housing near transit.

As part of the application process, Mountain View partnered with Affirmed Housing, the nonprofit developer building the affordable housing project at 87 E. Evelyn Ave. The lot currently operates as a safe parking site for people living in their vehicles.

In its place, Affirmed Housing is proposing to construct a 268-apartment complex, including 161 apartments for low- and very low-income households. Half of the apartments will be two- and three-bedrooms, according to the city staff report. Construction is expected to begin by mid-December.

The $35 million will be administered as a loan and will go directly to Affirmed Housing, the staff report said. The rest of the award will be issued as a grant to support program costs for the 87 E. Evelyn project, as well as transportation projects in the city.

Transportation improvements

Mountain View also partnered with the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board, which operates Caltrain, to boost its chances of getting the award. The collaboration paid off, as approximately $14.4 million will be used to fund transportation projects.

About $8.9 million will cover the purchase of two new train cars to improve service between San Jose and San Francisco, according to the staff report.

A portion of the grant will also support hyper-local projects, including roughly $5.2 million for transportation improvements on Middlefield Road. The award will help fund the design and construction of protected bike lanes between Moffett Boulevard and Bernardo Avenue, as well as pedestrian and bicycle upgrades at four intersections: Moffett Boulevard, Easy Street, Tyrella Avenue and North Whisman Road.

The grant will also cover the installation of 10 new bus shelters near the Evelyn affordable housing site, which will cost $330,000, according to the staff report.

Additionally, the award will cover program costs associated with the Evelyn housing project, including discounted VTA passes for residents for three years, high-speed internet access for three years, rental assistance and workforce development opportunities, the staff report said.

This story originally appeared in the Mountain View Voice. Emily Margaretten joined the Mountain View Voice in 2023 as a reporter covering City Hall.