Community-Led Progress: Recent Milestones in Housing, Behavioral Health, and Economic Mobility

 

Avanzando San Ysidro Community Land Trust Ground Breaking

This fall, Casa Familiar officially broke ground on Avanzando San Ysidro Community Land Trust—a milestone five years in the making. The 103-unit mixed-use project will blend affordable housing, commercial space, and climate-resilient design, all guided by a resident-led governance board.

The Community Land Trust model ensures long-term affordability and provides families with a pathway to homeownership after 15 years. This creates opportunities for generational wealth-building while protecting against displacement.

With AHF’s early funding support, Casa Familiar was able to address initial feasibility questions and seek specialized technical assistance. Follow on funding helped Casa deepen community engagement through neighborhood visioning sessions and culturally responsive storytelling, ensuring resident voices shaped every aspect of the project. The result is more than housing—it’s a lasting model for anti-displacement and community ownership.

Avanzando is the first project in California to use Low-Income Housing Tax Credits for a rent-to-own model at this scale, requiring years of advocacy and creative problem-solving. It now stands as a model to inspire similar efforts statewide and demonstrates what’s possible when public, philanthropic, and resident leadership align around a shared vision.

 

CETA Training Brings New Behavioral Health Framework to San Diego

In late October, three San Diego behavioral health organizations became the first in California to complete training in the Common Elements Treatment Approach (CETA), an evidence-based framework designed to improve behavioral health service delivery.

Developed through more than two decades of research and practical application world-wide, CETA integrates multiple treatment models into one streamlined approach, helping clinicians treat complex behavioral health needs more effectively. Rather than operating in silos with single therapeutic methods, providers learn to draw from a toolkit of proven techniques tailored to individual needs, and are supported with a robust platform that streamlines care and increases fidelity to evidence-based treatment.

With AHF’s support, San Diego Center for Children, Urban Restoration Counseling Center, and Rady Children’s Health North Inland Clinic are now equipped to pilot this model across the San Diego region, which can help reduce waitlists, improve patient outcomes, and strengthen coordination across community-based programs.

As these providers put their training into practice, San Diego is poised to lead a new era of equitable, integrated behavioral health care.

 

Market Street Village Wins National Housing Innovation Award

San Diego’s Market Street Village has been recognized with the Urban Land Institute‘s Jack Kemp Excellence in Affordable and Workforce Housing Award, celebrating developments that expand affordable housing through creativity and collaboration.

Through AHF’s partnership with Community Solutions‘ Large Cities Initiative and Wakeland Housing & Development Corporation, the project preserved 229 affordable homes that might otherwise have been converted to market-rate units. Half of these homes are designated for veterans exiting homelessness, while the rest serve residents earning up to 80% of the area median income.

Unlike traditional development, this model acquires and repurposes existing properties—bypassing lengthy tax credit processes to deliver housing faster and more cost-effectively while maintaining permanent affordability through nonprofit ownership. Funded through a social impact equity model, it demonstrates how mission-driven investment can scale solutions to both homelessness and affordability.

“Market Street Village is a powerful example of how collaboration can both preserve and expand affordable housing,” said Sarah Lyman, AHF Executive Director. “This project prevented the displacement of more than 200 households and will add up to 100 units prioritized for people exiting homelessness. We are proud to have played a part in this innovative, award-winning project.”

AHF’s investment reflects our belief that housing is healthcare—and that by stabilizing homes, we stabilize lives.

 

LUMI Begins Second Cohort: Building on Pilot Success

MANA de San Diego’s Latina Upward Mobility Initiative (LUMI) has moved into its second cohort of participants, building on the success of an AHF-supported pilot program.

LUMI combines guaranteed income with financial education, workforce development, and leadership mentorship. Over nine months, Latina mothers — whose daughters participated in MANA’s Hermanitas program — receive monthly stipends alongside coaching and academic support to reduce economic pressures while pursuing education and career advancement.

The pilot’s results were compelling: 100% of participants advanced in education or employment, improved their financial management, and reported greater self-confidence. One participant reflected, “Although we face many challenges, I now see myself as capable of achieving what I once thought impossible.”

With the second cohort now underway, LUMI continues to demonstrate how comprehensive support paired with direct investment in Latina mothers creates ripple effects across entire families and generations. A new video highlights participants’ stories and the program’s lasting impact.

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