Partly cloudy early then becoming cloudy with periods of rain this afternoon. High 59F. Winds SE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 90%. Rainfall near a quarter of an inch..
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Thunderstorms this evening will give way to steady rain overnight. Low 51F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 90%.
Residents will soon move into a Redwood Shores hotel set to be turned into an affordable senior housing facility now that San Mateo County has tapped two local agencies to operate the site.
“With them operating this senior housing project, I am confident that the building’s residents as well as the Redwood Shores community will be more than pleased with their anticipated contributions to helping vulnerable seniors,” Supervisor Warren Slocum, whose district the hotel falls into, said in an email.
MidPen Housing, a Foster City nonprofit, has been selected by the county to run TownePlace Suites, a 95-room hotel in the Redwood Shores community. The units will range from studios to three-bedroom apartments and will be offered at 30% below median family income to formerly homeless or financially struggling seniors ages 62 and older.
The county purchased the hotel for $29.3 million through a state program called Project Homekey. The program evolved from another state program called Project Roomkey, a $600 million effort to temporarily provide shelter to homeless residents during the pandemic.
MidPen will provide property management as well as assistance with economic and financial mobility, health and wellness counseling and other social and physical activities, said Matthew Franklin, president and CEO of MidPen Housing.
Residents will have access to additional mental health services through the Mental Health Association of San Mateo County. Melissa Platte, executive director of MHA, said the association was “thrilled that this project is moving forward,” noting MHA has partnered with MidPen Housing on various projects since 1998.
“Our staff struggle to find suitable housing for our low- and extremely low-income seniors in this county so this project is a welcome addition,” said Platte in an email. “We are excited to bring our expertise into this collaboration, knowing that between the two agencies we can really help our clients and tenants to feel a sense of belonging, purpose and community.”
Slocum expressed confidence in the agency’s ability to oversee the site given its “wealth of experience” operating similar locations in Northern California. MidPen owns 121 properties with more than 8,000 units in the region.
Echoing Slocum, County Manager Mike Callagy highlighted MidPen’s “deep experience” with affordable senior housing. On the agency’s partnership with the Mental Health Association of San Mateo County, Callagy said the additional on-site services “will be critical to our success.”
“Everyone who came together to make this hotel available for some of our most vulnerable residents are incredibly pleased to have both MidPen Housing and the Mental Health Association of San Mateo County as our partners in the TownePlace Suites,” said Callagy. “I am confident that this operator team is the right fit for this facility, for the county and for the new residents.”
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Officials anticipate move-ins will begin in March but full occupancy will likely take months to achieve. The county will initially create the referrals list and the two entities will work through applications and interviews together, said Franklin.
An interim agreement is being signed by the county, MidPen and MHA to give the agencies access to the site while a lease and operator agreement is prepared. The county will be providing MidPen a $1.5 million start-up loan needed to operate the site for a 10-year-period.
Confident in the agency’s partnership with MHA, Franklin also said he believes the Redwood Shores Community Association will be a strong partner in ensuring the facility’s success.
Redwood Shores residents have expressed concerns regarding the county’s abrupt move to purchase and transition the hotel into affordable housing. Recognizing the community’s concerns, the county promised the association it would be included in the operator selection process.
County officials said a panel of RSCA board members interviewed the county’s recommended operator after a community meeting in November.
Franklin said a meeting was held about two weeks ago with the RSCA and MidPen leadership to discuss solutions to the community’s concerns. The community association was also recently given a tour of the property, he said.
“They’re the kind of partners MidPen likes to have, partners who are engaged and have ideas. That’s a sign of really caring and wanting the neighborhood to be great,” said Franklin. “We really feel good about the start of the relations with the neighbors.”
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