Anaheim creates housing trust fund to finance affordable projects

The City of Anaheim will set up a trust fund to help finance affordable housing developments, seeded by a $30 million contribution from Walt Disney Company.

The City Council voted to create the housing trust fund to help finance affordable housing projects, fund down payment assistance programs for would-be homebuyers and potentially provide eviction prevention help to tenants, the Orange County Register reported.

The Anaheim Local Housing Trust Fund would be bankrolled by grants from state and federal agencies. Disney will also donate $30 million, half of that this year and the rest in five years as part of a deal to approve DisneylandForward, a $1.9 billion expansion of its local theme parks.

To funnel more cash into the trust going forward, the city is considering requiring developers to pay a development impact fee that would go toward affordable housing. 

Anaheim officials have also considered supporting the trust with money from the Anaheim Tourism Improvement District, funded by a 2 percent assessment on hotel room stays, to build affordable homes.

Trust policy would be established by the council, which would control its spending.

The funding goal for the trust, as well as plans for how many affordable homes it is expected to finance in the coming years, were not disclosed.

The council on Aug. 20 was slated to give the trust a second vote, according to the Register.

Council members were also expected to discuss proposed laws for affordable housing, including a development impact fee and inclusionary zoning, which would require new developments to set aside units with affordable rents.

The idea for the housing trust fund emerged from a March report by Los Angeles-based HR&A Advisors that evaluated strategies to create more homes in the city. In addition to the trust, the consultancy suggested easing zoning laws and requiring affordable housing to be a part of new developments.

Other OC cities with affordable requirements for new developments include Irvine, Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach, Mission Viejo, Newport Beach and Santa Ana. To get projects approved, developers can either pay an in-lieu fee that goes into a pot for affordable housing, or must set aside a certain percentage of units for subsidized homes.

To qualify for low-income housing, a family of four can earn up to $126,250 a year.

— Dana Bartholomew

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