“When I Grow Up I Want to Be…”

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We believe children and youth with stable housing have better access to safe housing and stronger connections to their schools, which leads to better futures. The Housing Authority wants to display children and youth poster art in the office lobby. The theme is: “When I grow up I want to become…”

Participation is open to all children and youth (under age 18)

Young artists may use watercolor, oil or acrylic paint, pen and ink, pastel, pencil/graphite, marker, crayon, or collage; please consider that posters will need to be copied, as well as displayed in a glass wall case.

Size: cannot be smaller than 8″ x 10″ or larger than 18″ x 24″

Use the downloadable application and permission form. List the child or youth’s name and the grade level they will enter in the fall. Please write the career they want (doctors, dog breeders, pilots, farmers, artists, whatever they are dreaming of becoming). Sign the permission that allows the Housing Authority to display, copy and keep the poster art. Tape the form to the back of the poster.

Posters can be mailed or dropped off during business hours to the Housing Authority from June 18 through August 3, 2017.

The Housing Authority will not be able to return any of the posters.

The Housing Authority will award four prizes, one for each school-age group, in the late August 2017. The four winners will receive a $50 gift card or a gift basket from a local art or student supply store and a framed copy of their poster!

Questions: Please call Lorena at (831) 454-9455, ext. 280 or Tina at ext. 209.

New Document Drop Box in South County!

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The Housing Authority is pleased to announce that we have installed a secure document drop at the Watsonville Main Library!

We hope this new drop box location will make it more convenient for many South County residents to submit documents to the Housing Authority.

The drop box is located on the first floor just past the reception desk. There is a sign on the wall above the document drop box that identifies it.

We will be picking up the contents of the box daily during the week, Monday through Friday.

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Nueva Caja para Dejar Documentos en el Sur del Condado

La Autoridad de Viviendas se complace en anunciar que hemos instalado una caja segura de documentos en la Biblioteca Principal de Watsonville!

Esperamos que esta caja para dejar documentos en su nueva ubicación sea más conveniente para los residentes del Sur del Condado para poder entregar documentos a la Autoridad de Viviendas.

La caja de documentos está situada en el primer piso de la biblioteca justo después de la recepción. Hay in letrero en la pared sobre la caja de documentos que lo identifica.

Estaremos recogiendo el contenido de la caja diariamente durante la semana.

Watsonville Public Library
275 Main Street, Suite 100
Watsonville, CA 95076
(831) 768-3400

Mon – Thurs 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.   Fri 10 a.m. – 6 a.m.    Sat 12 p.m. – 4 p.m.    Sun Closed
Lun – Jue 10 a.m. – 8 p.m.    Vier 10 a.m. – 6 a.m.   Sáb 12 p.m. – 4 p.m.    Dom Cerrado

Waiting List Opened for St. Stephens Senior Housing

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The Housing Authority of the County of Santa Cruz has opened a new site based waiting list for Project Based Voucher (PBV) assistance at the St. Stephens Senior Housing located at 2510 Soquel Avenue in Santa Cruz. St. Stephens Senior Housing is currently being developed by MidPen Housing for occupancy by low-income seniors at least 62 years of age. There will be a total of 39 project based units at St. Stephens. Five units are designated for formerly homeless veterans participating in the HUD-VASH program, as referred by the Veterans Administration. Five units are designated for Multipurpose Senior Services Program (MSSP) eligible persons referred by Health Projects Center. This new site based waiting list is for the remaining 29 units.

In most ways, the PBV program operates just like the regular Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) program, with households paying roughly one third of their income towards housing, and the Housing Authority paying the remainder of the rent directly to the landlord on the tenant’s behalf. However, there are some key differences between the programs. For example, in the PBV program, assistance is tied to the unit, not the household. Therefore, you must reside in St. Stephens Senior Housing for at least one year before potentially being eligible to transfer your assistance to another unit.

Pre-applications for the St. Stephens waiting list will be available beginning February 21st, 2017.

If you or your spouse are age 62 or older, and you are interested in residing at St. Stephens Senior Housing, you may complete a St. Stephens pre-application. Pre-application forms will be available beginning February 21, 2017:

  • by downloading
  • from our lobby during office hours Monday – Thursday 8:00 am – 5:00 pm
  • by calling (831) 454-5950
  • from Santa Cruz Veterans Resource Center, 1658 Soquel Drive, Suite H, Santa Cruz, Monday – Friday 8:30 am – 5:00 pm.

To be added to the St. Stephens waiting list, return a complete pre-application to the Housing Authority between Feb 21 and 5 pm March 10, 2017. The Housing Authority of the County of Santa Cruz provides equal opportunity to all applicants for participation in the Housing Authority’s Programs, and is an equal opportunity employer. The Housing Authority does not discriminate based on race, ancestry, color, religion, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, political affiliation, age, citizenship, handicap or familial status.

For information on availability of units and eligibility criteria call MidPen Housing at 855-278-7669 (follow prompts for St Stephens).

If you have any other questions, please contact our Waiting List Information Line at 831-454-5950.

Santa Cruz Children’s Museum of Discovery

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Santa Cruz Children’s Museum of Discovery (SCCMOD) offers families with Section 8 Vouchers or in Public Housing an annual $5 membership to interactive learning at this children’s museum inside the Capitola Mall.

Due to the generosity of a local family foundation, the Lee Schulte Scholarship Fund, the SCCMOD is able to offer a full year’s membership under their Family Access Program to qualifying families for only $5 per year.

Families need only complete a simple application which is available on the SCCMOD website www.sccmod.org, show paperwork that they receive any kind of public assistance and pay their $5 portion of the membership cost and they will receive a membership.

Family Access Membership Form in ENGLISH

Family Access Membership Form in ESPAÑOL

For more information, please contact SCCMOD at (888) 424-8035 or email Gina at [email protected]

Open Daily. Closed: Easter, Fourth of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Years Day. Located near the Food Court in the mall.

The Housing Authority Assists People Acquire Low Cost Internet at Home

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The Housing Authority wants to help bridge the digital divide for our participants and the whole community. Soon we will be mailing internet access information to all our participants receiving rental assistance. This information is from both AT&T and Comcast internet service providers. Both have special programs for connecting low-income households to the internet for a low monthly fee. AT&T and Comcast have slightly different ways of qualifying homes for the low cost internet service. AT&T qualifies homes with at least one person receiving CalFresh or SSI benefits. Comcast qualifies homes with persons receiving rental assistance through HUD/the Housing Authority. AT&T’s offer is $10 a month and Comcast’s is $9.95. Both companies prefer people apply online. Here are the company’s websites:

If you need more information or help please contact the company directly:

  • Comcast – Xfinity:1-(855)-847-3356
  • AT&T: English 1-(855)-220-5211 or Spanish 1-(855)-220-5225

New Housing Authority Logo

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The Housing Authority of the County of Santa Cruz is pleased to announce that we have adopted a new agency logo! The new logo is presented below. You will start seeing the new logo design integrated into our website, business cards, and forms over the coming weeks and months.

New Project Based Voucher waiting list for Resetar Residential Apartments in Watsonville

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The Housing Authority of the County of Santa Cruz has opened a new site based waiting list for Project Based Voucher (PBV) rental assistance at Resetar Residential Apartments in downtown Watsonville.

The Resetar Residential Hotel is an 89 unit supportive and affordable housing project in the heart of downtown Watsonville. There are a total of 52 Project Based units at Resetar, of which 5 units are set aside for formerly homeless veterans participating in the HUD-VASH program. There are 3 one-bedroom units and 49 studio apartment in the Project Based Voucher Program. Residents of Resetar Residential Hotel establish a service plan and receive case-management provided by Abode Services or other service providers.

In most ways, the PBV program operates just like the regular Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) program, with households paying roughly one third of their income towards housing, and the Housing Authority paying the remainder of the rent directly to the landlord on the tenant’s behalf. However, there are some key differences between the programs. For example, in the PBV program, assistance is tied to the unit, not the household. Therefore, you must reside in Resetar Residential Hotel for at least one year before potentially being eligible to transfer your assistance to another unit.

To be added to the Resetar waiting list, interested persons must submit a Pre-Application form to the Housing Authority. Pre-Application forms can be obtained on our website or from our lobby during office hours Monday-Thursday, or by calling (831) 454-5950. More information about the Project Based Voucher program can be found here.

The Housing Authority of the County of Santa Cruz provides equal opportunity to all applicants for participation in the Housing Authority’s Programs, and is an equal opportunity employer. The Housing Authority does not discriminate based on race, ancestry, color, religion, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, political affiliation, age, citizenship, handicap or familial status.

If you have any questions, please contact our Waiting List Information Line at 831-454-5950.

Santa Cruz Connect

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The Housing Authority recently participated in the annual Santa Cruz Connect (formerly called Project Homeless Connect) at the Kaiser Permanente Arena in downtown Santa Cruz.

Santa Cruz Connect focuses on bringing a large number of services and resources together in the same place at the same time. Hundreds of individuals, corporations, nonprofits, and government agencies provide Santa Cruz Connect and its clients with services such as dental care, eyeglasses, family support, food, HIV testing, housing resources, hygiene products, medical care, mental health services, substance abuse treatment, SSI benefits, legal advice, California identification cards, voice mail, employment counseling, job placement, wheelchair repair, veterinary services, and more.

The Housing Authority staffed a booth at the event, providing attendees with real time information on waiting list placement and status, as well as processing requests for waiting list reinstatement and answering general questions.

For more information about Santa Cruz Connect, please see the story in the Santa Cruz Sentinel. http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/social-affairs/20160524/from-pet-care-to-legal-help-santa-cruz-homeless-get-connected

St. Stephens Senior Housing

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The Housing Authority of the County of Santa Cruz has committed 39 project based vouchers towards the development of a new affordable housing complex called St. Stephens Senior Housing, which is being constructed on Soquel Avenue in Santa Cruz. These vouchers were used to leverage additional funding to support the development, including funding from the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee.

Once constructed, St. Stephens Senior Housing will house 39 low-income seniors, with several units set aside for homeless veterans, and for frail elderly. For more information, please see the following article from the Santa Cruz Sentinel.

To get on the interest list please visit the MidPen’s website at http://www.midpen-housing.org/.

A Message from the New Executive Director

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While I am new to the position of ED, I have worked with the Housing Authority for 12 years as Principal Administrative Analyst and more recently as Acting Deputy Executive Director. In this capacity, I have been involved with every program run by our Agency, including our large federal programs such as the Housing Choice Voucher (Section 8) program and the Low Income Public Housing program, our state and local programs, and I have been involved in the development and implementation of many of our special programs for vulnerable populations, such as our Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (VASH) vouchers for homeless veterans, and our waiting list preference for disabled and medically vulnerable homeless persons.

I believe deeply in the Housing Authority’s mission of promoting access to quality affordable housing, and I have seen the impact that housing stability has on the thousands of low income households served by this Agency. The Housing Authority, and the programs we administer, are a tremendous public asset, providing housing to thousands of individuals and families. Likewise, the individuals and families served by our programs form the bedrock of our community, and include day care providers, paramedics, retail and service workers, and countless other members of our workforce and our rental housing market, that keep our community vibrant.

In my role as ED, it will be my pleasure to work with our families, our staff, and our community to pursue access to quality affordable housing for low income families.