Our Stories

In San Diego, LISC is an Engine that Accelerates Opportunity

An in-depth article in the San Diego Union Tribune touted LISC’s new fund to spur affordable housing creation in a city facing a serious shortage. We beg to differ with the “little-known” descriptor in the article’s title, but the account of LISC’s 25 years of work in underinvested San Diego neighborhoods illustrates our role perfectly.

The excerpt below is from:
Little-known nonprofit could help solve San Diego housing shortage
by David Garrick, San Diego Union Tribune

A little-known local nonprofit hopes to play a key role in solving San Diego’s housing crisis with several new initiatives, including an aggressive proposal to accelerate construction of some low-income apartments.

The Local Initiatives Support Corporation, which gives developers seed money to buy land for housing projects in low-income areas, is proposing to establish a $50 million regional housing affordability fund to make construction of such housing cheaper and faster.

LISC also plans to accelerate construction of granny flats in San Diego by funding pre-approved architectural plans that would allow people to bypass the often lengthy design and approval phases.

And the national nonprofit, which launched its San Diego chapter 25 years ago this fall, hopes to bolster the Little Saigon neighborhood on El Cajon Boulevard by helping make it San Diego’s second enhanced infrastructure district.

"We are hoping to be a big-time part of solving the housing crisis," said Ricardo Flores, who took over as LISC executive director in April. Continued [+]...