Former five-star defensive end Williams Nwaneri transfers from Missouri to Nebraska
The San Diego Unified School Board is weighing recommendations to build 1,000 income-restricted apartments on five of its properties across the city, with a goal of housing 10% of its employees within the next decade, in what would mark a significant expansion of the district’s decade-old real estate strategy. “The time has come for us to set some bold but achievable long-term goals together,” Lee Dulgeroff, the district’s facilities executive director, said at a board workshop last week. School districts around California are increasingly pursuing the idea of building affordable housing for employees as a way to improve recruitment and retention amid a worsening housing crisis. That idea has become the hallmark of San Diego Unified’s ongoing real estate strategy , in which it has recruited developers to build housing on district-owned land via joint-occupancy lease agreements. Under the arrangement, the district gets to keep valuable land under its ownership while it collects a share of the developer’s revenue. And the money it collects is unrestricted — the district can use it for any part of its budget, unlike many kinds of federal and state funding. About 50 low-income families of district employees are already living in the district’s mixed-income Livia development in Scripps Ranch, which otherwise contains primarily above-market-rate apartments. And in April, the district accepted a developer’s proposal to build 270 rent-restricted units for low- and moderate-income families of district staff, as well as 57 units for seniors, at the former site of Central Elementary in City Heights. District leaders are hoping to add more units to their housing stock soon. In a recent staff survey of interest in affordable housing, most reported that they had a low to moderate household income, were interested in district-provided housing and struggled to afford housing costs. This week the school board heard housing recommendations drawn up by the LeSar Development Consultants firm that suggest the district could build 1,000 income-restricted apartments at five district-owned sites, all of which currently house administrative buildings or vacant land. Those sites are: —Eugene Brucker Center in University Heights: 13.5-acre property that could have 375 moderate-income units and 125 low-income units —Ballard Center in Old Town: 4.4-acre property that could have 234 moderate-income units —Revere Center in Linda Vista: 6.2-acre property that could have 90 low-income units —Instructional Media Center in Serra Mesa: 1.9-acre property that could have 81 moderate-income units —2101 Commercial Street property in Logan Heights: a 0.4-acre property that could have 101 low-income units The moderate-income units would be for district employees whose families have household incomes between 80% and 120% of San Diego County’s area median income, which is $100,400 for an individual and $143,400 for a family of four, according to Craig Adelman, senior principal at LeSar Development Consultants. The low-income units would be for employees with household incomes of up to 80% of the area median income, or up to $84,900 for an individual or $121,250 for a family of four. But realistically, to compete for affordable housing aid, families would actually need to make no more than 60% of the area median income, or up to $63,680 for an individual and $90,940 for a family of four, Adelman said. Adelman also suggested two example models for financing the district’s housing. One would primarily use low-income tax credits, plus long-term bank mortgage and state and local funding, to build low-income housing. That plan could come out to a development cost of about $719,000 per unit. The other model would mostly be financed through a permanent loan and could cost about $430,000 per unit to build. The district has also set aside about $206 million in bond funding from its Measure U, which voters passed two years ago, just for housing. Planning for district housing is complex, Adelman said, because funding sources such as public affordable housing programs and the district’s bond funding cannot always be mixed to fund the same projects. He also said it’s difficult to mix low- and moderate-income housing because of strings attached to low-income housing aid programs. Adelman added that there have been “extreme” increases in construction costs in recent years that exceed the pace of inflation. The affordable housing programs available are mainly focused on low-income families and don’t really offer housing help for moderate-income families, which is a major need in San Diego Unified. And affordable housing programs, such as tax-exempt affordable housing bonds, have become very competitive in California, Adelman added. LeSar’s plans only discussed housing for employees — but student school board Trustee Quinton Baldis said the district should also consider housing for students and their families. Many students’ families are experiencing housing insecurity or leaving the district because it’s too expensive. “I truly feel like providing homes and affordable housing for our students is aligned more with our goals and guardrails as a district,” Baldis said. In response, Dulgeroff suggested the district could consider housing for students and families in the future. He also suggested that housing could even be built on existing school properties. Board Trustee Cody Petterson said he is concerned about the idea of segregating the district’s housing developments by income, with some developments entirely for low-income families — primarily non-teacher employees — in certain neighborhoods and projects for higher-earning families in others. “That to me is, for lack of a better word, toxic,” Petterson said. Jennifer LeSar, CEO of the LeSar firm, instead urged the board to move forward with the plans and see what developers propose. “We have a really smart development community in San Diego and in California,” LeSar said. “I would say you should start with what you want and not solve all the problems. And the developers will tell you.” ©2024 The San Diego Union-Tribune. Visit sandiegouniontribune.com . Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
You can now get a yellow charging brick for $5 to match your Playdate’s cableEurope's main stock markets were little changed Thursday despite interest rate cuts by the eurozone and Swiss central banks as policymakers warned of economic and political woes in the region and beyond. Wall Street shares pulled back a day after the tech-heavy Nasdaq topped 20,000 points for the first time. The Paris CAC 40 index ended the day flat while the Frankfurt DAX added 0.1 percent after the European Central Bank (ECB) cut its interest rates by 25 basis points, marking its third consecutive reduction and fourth this year overall. ECB President Christine Lagarde said policymakers discussed political "uncertainty" in Europe and the United States before deciding on the cut. She mentioned "political situations in some of the member states" and the US presidential election won by Donald Trump. Lagarde warned that the eurozone economy was "losing momentum" and that "the risk of greater friction in global trade could weigh on euro area growth". Earlier, the Swiss National Bank surprised markets with a 50-basis-point reduction in its rate, citing slowing inflation and uncertainty over the impact of Trump's economic policies and Europe's political upheaval. The franc fell against the dollar and the euro following the announcement. With growth still weak and France and Germany in political crises there have been calls for the ECB to move faster. Germany is heading towards early elections in February following the collapse of Chancellor Olaf Scholz's coalition government as Europe's biggest economy falters. In France, President Emmanuel Macron is due to appoint a new prime minister after MPs toppled the government of Michel Barnier last week. Sylvain Broyer, an economist at S&P Global Ratings, said Europe was suffering from "a real crisis of confidence whose roots run deep and go beyond economic factors". "The ECB must react and speed up the pace of rate cuts, unless low confidence derails the nascent recovery and jeopardizes the return to price stability," he said. Investors are also focused on the US Federal Reserve's own interest rate decision next week. Consumer inflation data on Wednesday was in line with expectations as it inched slightly higher in November to 2.7 percent. But figures on Thursday showed US wholesale inflation also ticked higher in November. Nonetheless, futures markets continued to show high confidence the Fed will still cut interest rates next week. But there are concerns that measures pledged by Trump to slash taxes and regulations and ramp up tariffs could reignite price increases. In Asia, Hong Kong and Shanghai rallied amid hopes that leaders in China will unveil more help for the economy, which is struggling under the weight of weak consumer spending and a chronic property crisis. Tokyo gained more than one percent on a weaker yen. New York - Dow: DOWN 0.5 percent 43,014.12 (close) New York - S&P 500: DOWN 0.5 percent at 6,051.25 (close) New York - Nasdaq Composite: DOWN 0.7 percent at 19,902.84 (close) London - FTSE 100: UP 0.1 at 8,311.76 (close) Paris - CAC 40: FLAT at 7,420.94 (close) Frankfurt - DAX: UP 0.1 percent at 20,426.27 (close) Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 1.2 percent at 39,849.14 (close) Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: UP 1.2 percent at 20,397.05 (close) Shanghai - Composite: UP 0.9 percent at 3,461.50 (close) Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.0468 from $1.0496 on Wednesday Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.2669 from $1.2751 Dollar/yen: UP at 152.68 yen from 152.45 yen Euro/pound: UP at 82.59 from 82.31 pence West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 0.4 percent at $70.02 per barrel Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.2 percent at $73.41 per barrel burs-jmb/dwMedia tour in conjunction with D S Simon Media and Shipt shopping expert, Julie Coop, delivering last-minute gifting hacks, money and time saving opportunities and holiday hosting tips. NEW YORK, Dec. 18, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- What if you could give time as a gift this holiday season? Imagine fewer frantic dashes to the store, less stress forgotten items, and more moments spent where they matter most—with the people you love. That's the magic of Shipt. The holidays can feel like a race against the clock, but Shipt, the retail technology company specializing in delightful same-day delivery, is offering the ‘Gift of More You' by helping with last-minute shopping and preparation through reliable delivery and savings opportunities. While ground shipping deadlines have passed, Shipt can alleviate some of the last-minute pressures by offering reliable same-day delivery and savings solutions for last-minute shoppers. Shipt orders placed before 3pm local time on Tuesday, December 24, will be delivered same-day, so you don't have to run out to the store or show up empty-handed. Whether it's forgotten ingredients or last-minute gift shopping, holiday prep is made easy with Shipt by bringing the store straight to your door. During the busy holiday season, everyone could use the gift of more time. In fact, Shipt saves its members, on average, 80 hours per year. Treat yourself to a membership this holiday season to unlock the ultimate convenience. And if you're a Target Circle 360 member, you already have access to Shipt's marketplace and membership perks making it easier than ever to shop! Shipt is the ultimate gift this busy holiday season. With a newly launched Shipt gift card program, giving the gift of time has never been easier. Now available to load with a custom amount that never expires, or an annual or six-month Shipt membership, these gift cards offer the ultimate convenience that keeps on giving. Now until January 4th, you can give your loved one (or yourself) the gift of time through Shipt's reliable, personalized same-day delivery platform at a steep discount. Get an annual Shipt membership for just $49/year (reg. $99) for a gift that shows your love all year long! To learn more about how Shipt can be a last-minute resource for the holiday season, visit Shipt.com or download the Shipt app. About YourUpdateTV: YourUpdateTV is a property of D S Simon Media. The video included and release was part of a media tour that was produced by D S Simon Media on behalf of Shipt. Dante Muccigrosso Director of Media Integration & Client Reporting E: dantem@dssimon.com C: 973.524.0104 © 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Innovation and tradition in the good Aussie pie (some with a Mexican twist)