Built on surplus land owned by the Pacific Union Conference of Seventh Day Adventists in Riverside, CA, Vista de La Sierra is a new community offering apartment homes to families and individuals earning below 60% of the area median income. Thirty-nine apartments serve residents who have experienced homelessness or were at risk of becoming unhoused.

Ashley’s Story

Stable, affordable housing at Vista de La Sierra is the key to Ashley Price’s ability to create a better life for herself and her children. Returning from Georgia to California to be close to her mother and grandmother, she was juggling multiple responsibilities while struggling to find an affordable place to live in Riverside: she was studying full-time to become a Licensed Vocational Nurse, the primary caretaker for two of her three children who have sickle cell anemia, and newly pregnant with her fourth child.

“I didn’t realize how long it would take to get housing,” Ashley says. In the past she had had been able to quickly find a home, but the current housing market is especially challenging. Staying at shelters with the children and forced to study in her car or stay after school to have a place to focus became untenable, and Ashley made the difficult choice to have her two oldest children go to live with her grandmother for a time. “We have always been together, but my kids hated being at the shelter – separating us felt like my only choice.”

Thanks to a Facebook group that published information about affordable housing options, Ashely learned about the new National CORE development in Riverside. She credits the onsite property management team with making the process of getting her paperwork in order easier, and moving in allowed her to reunite her family.

“When I got approved here, it just really lit up my world,” Ashley shares. “I felt like a lot of weight had been lifted off my shoulders and it’s a great feeling to say this is mine.” Her kids love the programming at the community center and the onsite swimming pool. “My kids are water babies, and I love that it is gated.” She appreciates that the complex emphasizes safety, an important issue for a young mother, along with having a place to be grounded with her kids while she pursues her dream of becoming a nurse.

“Vista de La Sierra shows how we can come together with our community to address the affordable housing crisis,” said Michael Ruane, president of National CORE, one of the nation’s largest affordable housing developers of high-quality affordable housing communities in the country, dedicated to creating strong, healthy neighborhoods that thrive for generations to come. Since 1994, the developer has been awarded over $20 million in grants from FHLBank San Francisco’s Affordable Housing Program (AHP) for 42 high quality affordable housing projects, which includes a $500,000 grant to build Vista De La Sierra, delivered through Bank member Bank of America California.

Unlike traditional developers, National CORE creates a platform for transformational change for neighborhoods and individuals by leveraging resources and strategic partnerships to address the housing and social services needs of residents. “I am not one to give up,” Ashely says. “I do everything for my family, so I don’t plan on stopping here – this is only the beginning for us.”

Charles’ Story

“I’ve been through some hard times,” says new resident Charles O’Donnell, an electrician by trade. “I got COVID and then my roommate packed all my stuff and put it out on the curb and changed the lock. I was homeless, trying to live in my car.” His battle with COVID confined him to a hospital bed for 40 days and left him reliant on oxygen tanks, which created an added challenge for Charles, who is a large man with limited mobility as a result of an auto accident and lost an eye when he was assaulted by someone in the throes of addiction. “I was so close to giving up.”

For three years Charles struggled to get by, stashing spare oxygen tanks and his mobility scooter at the homes of acquaintances and occasionally staying at homeless shelters. During a stay at a Riverside shelter, he connected with a housing navigator who told him about National CORE’s new Vista de La Sierra development and assisted him with all the paperwork required to apply for an apartment. He is thrilled with his one-bedroom apartment that has plenty of electrical outlets for his equipment and the added bonus of a relaxing private patio.

Importantly, residents like Charles have access to more than a roof over their head at Vista de La Sierra, where Hope through Housing delivers programs and events focused on employment, social connection, health and wellness and Mercy House provides specialized support services for the formerly unhoused to promote economic, emotional, and spiritual well-being. These vital services help the most vulnerable residents be successful in maintaining stable housing and position others for transitioning to open market housing options.