PANORAMA CITY : Disabled Are Welcomed to New Homes

Councilman Richard Alarcon joined representatives from local and federal housing agencies Friday to welcome about 40 people with disabilities to their new Panorama City homes.

For many residents of the newly constructed Ridgeview Manor apartment complex, the celebration marks the first time they have lived alone.

The $3.8-million, 40-unit housing project opened in June as the result of a cooperative effort among the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Community Redevelopment Agency of Los Angeles, the Atlanta-based Christian Senior Housing Foundation and United Cerebral Palsy. The project was funded with grants from HUD and CRA. The one-bedroom apartments are federally subsidized, with residents paying an average of $200 a month rent.

Alarcon, who was appointed to the City Council’s Community Redevelopment and Housing Committee in late July, said in a speech that the housing project represents a part of the American dream for the new residents.

“This is a moment we all can share in as we move to provide a home for everyone,” the councilman said.

The three-story apartment building in the 14600 block of Gledhill Street is wheelchair accessible and has features such as a key-card front door lock and infrared remote-control devices that open doors and call the elevator. Residents live alone, but many receive assistance from family members or social service organizations.

The celebration was particularly emotional for Richard McCarron, 60, and his son David, 28, who moved into Ridgeview Manor after two years of living in homeless shelters, at friends’ houses and in their car. In 1991, Richard McCarron was partially paralyzed from two strokes, lost his 35-year job as a parking attendant, and was evicted from his apartment because he could not pay rent.

Now a wheelchair user, Richard McCarron said that before the stroke he was very active and had always rented or owned his own place. Moving into Ridgeview, he said, made him very happy. “I love it here,” he said. “I think I’ll stay here until I die.”