'This is the beginning': $4 million for affordable housing in Altadena sparks new hope
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For several days after the Eaton fire tore through Altadena, Wayne Clarvoe couldn’t bear to leave his fire-damaged apartment building.He stayed in his truck outside the affordable senior complex, trying to keep an eye on things: warding off looters, putting out ember flare-ups, responding to flooding when the building’s sprinklers finally burst back on.“This is my home,” the 64-year-old said of the Altadena Vistas Apartments, where he lived for more than a decade.
Eventually, he began bouncing from place to place, struggling to find a spot that he could afford and where he felt truly welcome.But on Wednesday — for the first time in almost a year — Clarvoe said he felt some hope that he finally might be able to return home.“This is the beginning of all of the residents coming back,” Clarvoe said, grinning.
State Sen.Sasha Renée Pérez, a Democrat who represents Altadena, announced a $4-million investment of state funds in affordable housing for Eaton fire survivors, half of which was reserved for repairs and remediation of the Altadena Vistas complex.
It’s part of a larger pot of $8 million that Pérez worked to secure to help bring more of the community’s families back home, the senator said.The other $4 million will fund, primarily, direct grants, which will be made available through a future application process.
Altadena residents who were fully committed to rebuilding in the immediate aftermath of destruction are now rethinking it, having grown weary of the slog.Although Pérez acknowledged that obstacles remain for those recovering from the Eaton fire, especially as many still struggle to find stable, affordable housing, she said Wednesday’s announcement was a sign of progress.“There are times to celebrate, and that’s what today is about,” Pérez said Wednesday outside of the Altadena Vistas complex.
The senator was flanked by other state, cou...