Berkeley's Black Churches To Build Affordable Housing

Writing for Berkeleyside, Supriya Yelimeli describes the efforts of Black churches in Berkeley to build affordable housing as part of the Adeline Corridor plan. "The Adeline Corridor Plan lays out a decade-long vision to reconfigure the South Berkeley neighborhood surrounding Ashby BART. It noted that while many neighborhood institutions like Black churches and shops remain in the area, their congregations and patrons have been priced out of South Berkeley and North Oakland."

As Yelimeli writes, "St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church and Ephesian Church of God in Christ are partnering with the city and Richmond-based Community Housing Development Corporation (CHDC), a housing nonprofit, to create the 52-unit St. Paul Terrace at 2024 Ashby Ave. and the 82-unit Ephesians Legacy Court at 1708 Harmon St." Meanwhile, "The nearly century-old Ephesian church, on Alcatraz Avenue, has a parking lot and a vacant building on Harmon Street that would be converted into a $13 million housing complex for seniors earning between 33% to 60% of AMI."

The projects are funded in part by the city through Measure O and general funds. "Rev. Anthony Hughes at St. Paul AME said, like the city and county, the church has a moral obligation to contribute to region-wide efforts in ending the housing crisis."