Costa Mesa is taking strides to expand affordable housing in the city, as officials June 20 approved $4 million towards the conversion of a Travelodge motel near the John Wayne Airport into 76 permanent supportive housing units for those at risk of homelessness.

Councilors voted 4–1, with Councilman Don Harper opposed, to move forward with the project that would help the city meet its goal of adding nearly 3,000 units of housing for low-income earners by 2029.

California’s housing department has mandated Costa Mesa zone for 11,760 new units of housing by that year at various income levels as part of a statewide plan. Last November, city officials additionally approved $5.8 million towards the conversion of a Motel 6—located on Newport Boulevard—which will add 87 units of housing for very low-income households.

According to city officials, the Travelodge’s small rooms will be renovated into larger studio and one-bedroom apartments by the nonprofit developer American Family Housing (AFH) out of Midway City, also located in Orange County.

The nonprofit has nearly 40 years of experience helping the homeless, operating 49 housing projects with almost 400 units of affordable housing in Orange and Los Angeles counties, according to a city staff report.

The project will allow for those “formerly experiencing homelessness, who cannot live on their own because they were homeless for so long or have disabilities,” according to a presentation given by Nate Robbins, the city’s neighborhood improvement manager.

Councilwoman Andrea Marr said the city should continue to do similar projects.

“The more of it we build, the better in my mind, and I’m happy to support this … let’s get all the motels converted,” she said.

The cost of the motel conversion is a tad over $45 million, with more than half of the expense covered by Project Homekey, a California program announced by the state’s housing department in July 2020. The program awards local governments funds to buy and rehabilitate buildings for the homeless or those on the verge of homelessness.

The Civic Center in Costa Mesa, Calif., on Nov. 16, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

Mayor John Stephens said the development is a “wonderful collaboration [with] the state,” to help the city’s homeless, noting that by converting both the motels the city will have “163 permanent supportive homes where people will get shelter every night.”

The city of Newport Beach will chip in $3 million towards the development of the site and the county of Orange is contributing $6.8 million.

For its part, Costa Mesa will use $1.5 million of American Rescue Plan Act funds and $2.5 million it had earmarked for low incoming housing projects, which will be repaid by the developer over a 55-year agreement, according to city officials.

As the sole dissenting vote, however, Councilman Harper questioned the long-term impact on neighborhoods when introducing permanent supportive housing projects.

“I just want to know how this level of income in neighborhoods, how it impacts the community and if it’s negative or positive or it’s neutral,” he said.

A homeless man sits on the sidewalk at a bus station in Costa Mesa, Calif., on Oct. 26, 2020. (John Fredricks/The Epoch Times)

He also questioned what incentive would the developer have to maintain the property after it’s remodeled and opened.

According to city officials, AFH will not only develop the housing, but also have 24-hour on-site staff for management, as well as partner with service providers of various specialized fields “to ensure tenants have access to a full spectrum of resources.”

“We want to develop more of these projects in other cities … we’re only as good as the projects that we’ve developed,” a representative from AFH said during the meeting.

Robbins, the city’s neighborhood improvement manager, cited a study from the University of California–Irvine’s Livable Cities Lab, which showed crime rates went down while property values increased for other neighborhoods surrounding similar affordable housing projects.

As mandated by the state’s Homekey program, 48 of the renovated units will be for Orange County residents with housing vouchers who have been homeless the longest or have disabilities.

Of the remaining units, Costa Mesa will have 16 units and Newport Beach 12 for placements, according to city officials.

The Travelodge currently sits on 3.5 acres at 1400 Bristol Street near the intersection of Red Hill Avenue, 100 yards from Newport Beach, and has 120 rooms averaging 250 square feet each, according to city officials.

A commercial building currently leased by a restaurant is on the same parcel of land and will continue to operate, officials said.