Community Development

Initiatives and Proactive Work

Program Staff

We view Community Development as a means to empower low-income individuals and transform residential real estate markets to create vibrant, equitable and sustainable neighborhoods. The Community Development Program focuses on housing and economic security to provide a strong platform from which individuals and families can build sustainable livelihoods. We do this by supporting efforts that: expand and maintain the supply of affordable housing, and, increase economic opportunity through workforce development and training, asset-building and financial services. Additionally, we fund long-term solutions to poverty and homelessness including transitional housing and supportive housing. To leverage the greatest change, we make targeted investments in policy/advocacy that address barriers at the systems level and have lasting impact on low-income communities.

For more information about the Community Development Program at The San Francisco Foundation, please contact us at 415.733.8500 or communitydevelopmentinfo@sff.org.

Initiatives and Proactive Work

Bay Area Workforce Funding Collaborative

The Bay Area Workforce Funding Collaborative (BAWFC) is an ambitious and groundbreaking partnership between philanthropic foundations and the State of California’s Employment Development Department (EDD) to match some of the San Francisco Bay Area’s most disadvantaged jobseekers with employers in high-growth economic sectors. Visit the BAWFC page for more information.

California Homeownership Preservation Initiative

It is predicted that 6.5 million Americans will lose their homes to foreclosure in the next five years. A quarter of all foreclosures in the country are in California. Since 2007, 315,000 homeowners have lost their homes, and foreclosure rates continue to rise in California.* In response to the state’s foreclosure crisis, the California Homeownership Preservation Initiative (CHOPI) was launched in 2008 as a two-year $5.3 million program to expand the availability of foreclosure intervention services.

Recognizing the critical role that community-based nonprofit housing organizations play in preserving homeownership for families and communities, CHOPI’s funding was intended to help those organizations hire additional staff to increase the scale of foreclosure intervention services provided to low- and moderate-income homeowners in danger of losing their homes in California.

CHOPI was spearheaded by the California Reinvestment Coalition, which advocates for the right of low-income communities and communities of color to have fair and equal access to banking and other financial services. CRC worked with The San Francisco Foundation and the California Community Foundation to direct funding from several financial institution partners to 40 housing counseling organizations covering 49 counties across the state. This unprecedented collaboration has resulted in over 36,000 low- and moderate-income Californians receiving foreclosure assistance, 73% of whom are people of color. Services provided under CHOPI have helped prevent nearly 6,000 foreclosures.

*www.dqnews.com through Q4 2008.

Community Development Staff

: Photo of Vanitha Venugopal, program officer for community development. March 2009.

Vanitha Venugopal [bio]
Program Officer, Community Development

Jessica Pitt
Bay Area Workforce Funding Collaborative Coordinator, Community Development

Gloria Bruce
Program Fellow, Community Development

Michelle Myles Chambers
Program Assistant, Community Development

Community Development

Goal and Objectives

The Foundation has just begun strategic planning and evaluation of our funding priorities. The Community Development program will continue to support organizations, projects, and policy/advocacy that help individuals and families with economic self-sufficiency and affordable housing.

Goal - Promote sustainable livelihoods and stable, affordable neighborhoods for individuals and families.

Objective: Increase affordable housing opportunities for low- and extremely low-income households

Support the preservation, development and acquisition of quality affordable housing
Support advocacy and public policy work to increase affordable housing, especially for those who are homeless, and low-income households at risk of homelessness
Increase access to affordable housing including rental, subsidized and ownership housing through fair housing policy, tenant rights, voucher and assistance programs, and education activities
Support sustainable development and land use planning strategies that integrate affordable housing with transit, energy efficiency, healthy communities and community benefits agreements

Objective: Increase economic security through improved access to jobs, support of community economic development, and support for anti-poverty efforts.

Support job preparation, training, placement, and retention assistance especially in career positions and high-growth sectors including green jobs
Support efforts to increase wages and incomes and that maximize use of public benefits and programs that promote economic opportunity
Support public policy efforts to end poverty and help people reach economic self-sufficiency
Support financial planning, asset development, and financial services that are fair, accessible and effective for low-income people
Support microenterprise, social enterprise, and small business

Objective: Strengthen the safety net services within the context of affordable housing and economic security by supporting permanent or transitional housing, employment assistance, and other long-term solutions to homelessness.

Please note that if you are providing emergency shelter, supportive services, and crisis intervention programs that protect individuals and families against the adverse effects of poverty you should apply under the Community Health program. Please click here for more information.

Support safe and suitable permanent or transitional housing for the homeless.
Support services that stabilize families and individuals and help them maintain their housing to prevent homelessness.
Support advocacy, public policy work, and other efforts to prevent homelessness and strengthen the safety net of services for people in poverty.