Guerneville Permanent Supportive Housing Financing

In an effort to address the homeless crisis, the Sonoma County Community Development Commission (CDC) recently proposed to lend up to $950,000 to West County Community Services for the purchase of a five-bedroom home in Guerneville to be used as permanent supportive housing for formerly homeless individuals. Providing permanent housing solutions is the adopted policy of the County of Sonoma, and a nationally recognized best practice in address systemic homelessness. The Board of Supervisors was set to consider this financing arrangement at its public meeting on October 10, 2017.

Before completing a loan for this purpose, the CDC had the property appraised as part of its normal due diligence to ensure that the loan amount was supported by the valuation. The appraisal results received yesterday do not support the proposed purchase price or the intended loan amount. As a result, the CDC will not be seeking approval from the Board on Tuesday as planned.

The CDC and County of Sonoma remain committed to our residents experiencing homelessness, and will continue to pursue opportunities to expand permanent supportive housing throughout the county.