The Los Angeles Emerging Developer Learning Lab: Growing and Strengthening Los Angeles County’s Housing Development Sector

Affordable housing and homelessness

County of Los Angeles (select only if your project has a countywide benefit)

Expand existing project, program, or initiative (expanding and continuing ongoing, successful work)

CSH is committed to strengthening the housing development sector by encouraging developers to create and operate supportive housing (SH), affordable housing paired with services. SH helps individuals with the highest barriers to housing to stabilize and thrive. The issue we are seeking to address is twofold:
Emerging developers who want to create SH have faced significant barriers to growth; and
The supply of SH in LA County does not meet the need.
For over 30 years, CSH has provided SH developers with loans and technical assistance to increase production. Our borrowers have shared a myriad of barriers that have stalled their growth. These include limited access to financing and a lack of experience with the public funders that issue Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC), an essential resource for the development of supportive and affordable housing. To stem the tide of homelessness in LA County, we must support emerging developers to grow and sustain their presence in the field.

CSH will launch a Request for Proposals for LA-EDLL, open to emerging developers who have not completed a LIHTC project on their own, and have at least one housing project that meets one of the criteria below:
New construction or rehabilitation rental housing development in the project concept, pre-development, or construction phase, or in operation; or
SH rental development (either new construction or rehabilitation) in the planning phase.
Selected LA-EDLL teams will include an identified sponsor, property manager and service provider with the willingness and ability to engage individuals with lived experience of homelessness in the planning and ongoing operations of SH development. Once selected, CSH will engage participants to assess their needs. Their feedback will inform the session agendas for four co-learning sessions designed to strengthen development teams’ organizational capacity, infrastructure, and resources, positioning them to increase the supply of SH in LA County. While session topics will be tailored to teams’ specific needs and pain points, we expect to cover issues such as accessing LIHTC, and strategies for quality, trauma-informed services and operations. Each team will receive a grant and participate in the four co-learning sessions, culminating in a final celebration event. During and following the co-learning sessions, participants will have access to tailored technical assistance, including support accessing CSH’s loan products.

The goal of LA-EDLL is to grow and strengthen LA County’s housing development sector by building the capacity of emerging development teams to create and operate high-quality, trauma-informed SH. If successful, LA-EDLL will position emerging developers to deliver SH through more intentional housing options supported by robust partnerships between developers, property managers and service providers, as well as the people and communities they serve. The co-learning aspect of LA-EDLL will create a space for participants to network with one another, collaborate and troubleshoot challenges. With homelessness on the rise in LA County, LA-EDLL will address the critical need for SH by building a pipeline of skilled development teams.
Following the co-learning sessions, CSH will seek feedback from participants to ensure continuous quality improvement, as our goal is to refine the program and deliver future LA-EDLL cohorts.