Oxnard committee recommends $792,999 CDBG loan for motel conversion to supportive housing

On Jan. 28 the Oxnard Community Services Public Safety Housing and Development Committee voted to recommend that the City Council adopt a resolution authorizing the Housing Director or designee to execute a $792,999 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) loan agreement with Casa Aliento LP to rehabilitate and convert an existing motel at 1245 North Oxnard Boulevard into permanent supportive housing.

The recommendation passed on a 3-0 voice vote after a staff presentation and questions from committee members about eligibility, prioritization and affordability. Chair McArthur moved the recommendation; Committee Member Perallo seconded. Committee Member Perez joined the yes vote. The committee’s action is a recommendation to council; final approval rests with the City Council.

Brenda Lopez, interim director of the Public Housing Department, told the committee that placement of prospective tenants is managed through the Ventura County Continuum of Care, which uses a scoring and case‑conference process to prioritize referrals. "They have a scoring system. I'm not familiar with it," Lopez said, adding that case managers advocate for applicants and that the county maintains the wait list and referral order. Lopez emphasized that the city does not independently alter the county’s prioritization.

Lopez described the project as permanent supportive housing and said residency is intended to continue "as long as they continue to participate in supportive services," with ongoing case management and eligibility verification. A separate staff member explained the financing requirement tied to California’s Homekey program: the project must remain affordable to the target group for 55 years, and if costs rise the operator must secure additional funds to maintain affordability rather than shifting those costs to the city.

Committee members pressed staff on operational details. Staff said a first lease-up phase completed in December and that referrals are already under way for the remaining 38 units; staff also said documentation for vouchers and eligibility cannot be accepted more than 120 days in advance because paperwork expires and must be reverified if it becomes "stale." The staff response included confirmation that applicants who must resubmit documents retain their place in line during re-verification.

Members sought and received a clarification on timing language in the draft subrecipient agreement: a city staff member said calendar days and "days" are equivalent and that "business days" refers only to weekdays. The committee also asked about potential conflicts of interest; staff advised that a member living beyond 1,000 feet of the project site did not need to recuse.

The staff report identified Casa Aliento LP as the proposed subrecipient and named the contact for the item as Brenda Lopez. The motion before the committee asked that council be recommended to approve execution of the CDBG loan and related documents; the committee voted to carry the recommendation forward.

This item drew no public speakers during the committee meeting.

Votes at a glance: Chair McArthur — Yes; Committee Member Perallo — Yes; Committee Member Perez — Yes. Motion: carry recommendation to City Council to authorize a $792,999 CDBG loan agreement with Casa Aliento LP for rehabilitation/conversion of the motel at 1245 North Oxnard Boulevard; motion seconded and recommended to council 3-0.

Next steps: the committee’s vote sends the recommendation to the City Council for final consideration; staff said they will obtain additional detail from the Ventura County Continuum of Care about the prioritization/scoring process to include in the council packet.