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1017 FEB CITY OF CLERK February 21, 2017 Mayor Miguel Pulido and Members of the City Council City of Santa Ana 20 Civic Center Plaza P.O. Box 1988, M31 Santa Ana, CA 92701 SUBJECT: First Street Apartments - 1440 E. First Street Santa Ana, CA 92701 City Council Item 80A, February 7, 2017 Dear Mayor Pulido and Members of the City Council: Orange County Communities Organized for Responsible Development (OCCORD) is well aware of AMCAL's affordable housing proposal located on First Street in the City of Santa Ana. We are writing to express our strong support for this type of housing which is needed now more than ever. OCCORD is a non-profit organization that has been working with low income families to organize and advocate for good jobs, strong neighborhoods and a better quality of life. Our organization works closely with working families and immigrant communities throughout Santa Ana who are in great need of affordable housing during the current housing crisis in our City. The housing affordability crisis in Santa Ana is increasing each year, including home purchase prices and apartment rents that our residents can't afford. Skyrocketing rents and home prices are forcing our families to live in overcrowded housing and substandard housing conditions. Our families are extremely rent burdened, as most of their limited income (over half) is used to pay for housing costs. We support AMCAL's proposal for several reasons: Given the housing crises, we need affordable housing to be developed immediately, and First Street is approved and ready to move forward. The rental units are 100% affordable to households earning 30% and 60% of Area's Median Income, and half of the project provides three and four bedroom units designed for larger families— a great need and almost non-existent in the Santa Ana housing market. After two years of work, the First Street Apartments project is almost a shovel ready