Low-Income Housing Request Denied
After a contentious public hearing, the City Council this week denied a request by a local nonprofit organization for $24,000 to operate a low-income housing complex.
Mayor Chris Norby, who with council members Julie Sa and Peter Godfrey voted against the request, said he would rather provide the needy with rent vouchers than help a group build housing that would be exempt from property taxes.
Fullerton Interfaith operates one homeless shelter in the city and is in the process of building a $3.8-million housing complex on Chapman Avenue. It asked the city for $24,000 for the project.
Several residents sided with Norby, saying the city should not help Fullerton Interfaith pay its operating expenses. But others, including council members Jan M. Flory and Don Bankhead, argued that the private sector does not provide sufficient affordable housing.
“It is inhumane, it is insensitive and it is immoral to allow our people to suffer,” said Jon West of Fullerton Interfaith.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
