Four years ago, a small but dedicated group of housers in the South Bay banded together to consider whether it was time to create a housing policy and advocacy organization for Santa Clara County that was laser focused on affordable housing 24 hours a day. Fast forward to July 27, 2018 when SV@Home celebrated its three-year anniversary and the work of those who were there at the beginning.
One thing is certain– we wouldn’t be here today if it weren’t for Enterprise Community Partners Inc. and the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, which provided the seed money needed to complete the exploratory and benchmarking required. At the celebration, SV@Home recognized Heather Hood, Deputy Director or the Northern California Market at Enterprise, and Gina Dalma, Special Advisor to the CEO and Vice President of Government Relations for SVCF, for all that they did to get us up and running!
We also heard from special guest Larry Stone, Santa Clara County Assessor, who talked about the importance of affordable housing in Silicon Valley, especially given the significant increases in property values in recent years. And we were especially excited about San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo’s announcement that he is proposing a $950 million bond on the November ballot, at least $250 million of which would be for affordable housing.
Assemblymember Ash Kalra presented SV@Home with a birthday resolution signed by Assemblymember Kansen Chu, which we will hang proudly in our offices. “What Silicon Valley at Home has done is to bring us all together,” said Kalra, “not just tonight but time and again over the last three years during difficult times, during challenging moments to make sure that all of us are moving in the same direction, all of us are working as hard as we possibly can to ensure that we’re providing housing to everyone that we possibly can in our valley, because they all deserve it. Housing is a right. It’s a human right. We know that. We’re going to continue to fight until everyone has a roof over their head that they can call home.”
Thanks to everyone who came out to celebrate with us, eat good food, and enjoy the company of other housers!