San Diego City Council Approves 164 Affordable Housing Units Conversion in East Village

The San Diego City Council has approved a plan to transform the former skydiving facility at 1401 Imperial Ave. in East Village into 164 affordable housing units under an agreement with Father Joe’s Villages, the city’s largest homelessness services provider. The building, currently serving as the Homelessness Response Center, will be purchased by Father Joe’s Villages for $7.9 million, including a $2.9 million loan from the city, and redeveloped into studios, one-bedroom, and two-bedroom homes restricted to households earning 30% to 60% of the area median income for 55 years. Rather than demolishing the structure, the nonprofit plans to adaptively reuse and expand it from three to 15 stories, providing critical affordable housing to those most at risk of homelessness. The project also includes wrap-around services such as physical and behavioral health care, social supports, and employment assistance to help residents achieve self-sufficiency. City leaders, including Mayor Todd Gloria and Councilman Stephen Whitburn, emphasized the urgency of addressing the housing crisis by utilizing underused city assets to create deeply affordable, innovative housing options in East Village.