SANTA CLARA COUNTY, Calif., June 02, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Affordable housing developer Affirmed Housing, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) and community partners broke ground Friday on RISE, a 195-unit affordable housing development adjacent to the Berryessa/North San José BART Station. The transit-oriented community will provide affordable housing for low-income residents and people transitioning out of homelessness in one of the nation’s most expensive housing markets.
“This groundbreaking highlights what strong public-private partnerships can achieve,” said Affirmed Housing President Jimmy Silverwood. “By working closely with like-minded partners, we are advancing a transit-oriented development that delivers much-needed housing while connecting residents to jobs, services and opportunity. Together, we are helping shape a more sustainable and accessible future for the Berryessa community.”
“This project demonstrates the power of partnership in addressing the Bay Area’s housing and transportation challenges,” said Greg Richardson, deputy general manager of VTA. “The groundbreaking represents an investment not only in 195 affordable homes, but also in opportunity, mobility and quality of life for families across our community. By connecting residents to jobs, schools and essential services through accessible, high-quality transit, transit-oriented developments like this help create stronger, more sustainable and more inclusive communities throughout Santa Clara County.”
Built on land leased from VTA, the 10-story, sustainability-minded complex consists of 193 affordable studio, one-, two- and three-bedroom apartment homes for households earning between 30 and 60 percent of the area median income (AMI), plus two manager apartments. Residents will have access to a community room, computer lab, food pantry, children’s play area, community garden and adult education programs coordinated by Compass for Affordable Housing. RISE features nearly 200 bicycle parking spaces, and its location in a highly amenitized area allows residents to live within walking distance of public transportation and near grocery stores, pharmacies, restaurants and other commercial businesses.
Of the total homes, 49 apartments are permanent supportive housing (PSH) reserved for extremely low-income residents, with on-site case management offices and wrap-around supportive services available to assist those residents in living their lives more independently. The PSH apartments are supported by project-based Section 8 vouchers provided by the Santa Clara County Housing Authority. The Santa Clara County Office of Supportive Housing provided capital funding and will provide intensive resident services to the PSH homes once the property is occupied. In addition, the City of San Jose, the California Department of Housing and Community Development, Destination: Home and the Bay Area Housing Innovation Fund provided critical public, predevelopment and mezzanine funding needed to construct the development.
“This project is proof of what is possible when we build with purpose and partnership,” said County Board of Supervisors President Otto Lee, who represents District 3, where RISE is located. “By creating 195 units of affordable housing near accessible public transit and placing sustainability at the center of the effort, we are delivering the kind of community our residents deserve. I’m grateful to the agencies, advocates, partners and community members whose collaboration and persistence helped bring this vision to life. Let’s keep building together.”
“Too often, affordable housing projects spend years waiting for one final financing source while costs continue to rise,” said Rebecca Foster, CEO of the Housing Accelerator Fund. “The Bay Area Housing Innovation Fund was created to close those critical gaps and help great projects move forward faster. RISE is a powerful example of what that can unlock: 195 affordable homes for families at a major transit hub in one of the country’s highest-cost housing markets.”
RISE is the first project in Santa Clara County to receive funding from the Bay Area Housing Innovation Fund, a first-of-its-kind financing source launched in 2024 by Apple, The Sobrato Organization, Destination: Home, and the Housing Accelerator Fund. RISE was selected for its ambitious cost and delivery targets and its alignment with the Housing Innovation Fund’s mission to accelerate high-impact, cost-efficient affordable housing development. The Housing Innovation Fund’s financing commitment closed the final gap in the project’s funding, enabling the project to start while maximizing the impact of public investments, including the Measure A Affordable Housing Bond that voters approved in 2016, which is on track to help create roughly 6,700 new affordable housing units in Santa Clara County.
“We’re thrilled to help bring the impact of the Bay Area Housing Innovation Fund to Santa Clara County with this much-needed development,” said Jennifer Loving, CEO of Destination: Home. “RISE is demonstrating what’s possible when partners spanning sectors coalesce around a shared goal, overcoming barriers to create the critical affordable housing infrastructure our communities deserve.”
About Affirmed Housing
Affirmed Housing is a leader in affordable, multifamily housing development, delivering safe, sustainable, high-quality communities for families, veterans, seniors and people experiencing homelessness. The company works with municipalities and private owners throughout California to promote housing stability and neighborhood well-being by leveraging deep expertise in public finance, low-income housing tax credits, and tax-exempt bond finance, as well as site selection, engineering, architecture, construction, relocation and marketing. Since 1992, Affirmed Housing has financed more than $3 billion in affordable and supportive housing development, with more than 6,000 apartment homes developed or under development in more than 75 communities. The company has offices in San Diego and Oakland. Visit: www.affirmedhousing.com.
Contacts: Vicky Jay Blattel Communications 415.413.4526 vicky@blattel.com
