In a historic first for Los Angeles County, the Fernandeño Tataviam Band of Mission Indians (FTBMI) held a groundbreaking ceremony in the City of San Fernando for what will be the first native senior housing project.
The project, located in a vacant lot right across the street from San Fernando Recreation Park, will build 26 permanent, affordable homes on fee land – which is land held by an individual or tribe rather than the federal government. The building will be called Elderberry House, or Hükátkin, named after the elderberry tree that was the “backbone” of the tribe.
Although it is a native senior housing project, prospective tenants won’t be limited to only tribal citizens, as the building will be open to the general public as well.
Tribal President Rudy Ortega Jr. said that the FTBMI has a history of building dwellings throughout their ancestral villages, but this project will be their first time constructing contemporary housing.
“Currently, there isn’t any tribal structure or building that has been built from the ground up in Los Angeles County,” Ortega Jr. said. “So this is unique and the first of its kind, coming from a tribe – especially a state, nonfederally recognized tribe – that has the passion to provide such a facility for the community.”
The tribe has spent around five years planning for this project and acquiring the necessary funds – around $18 million to complete it. The tribe has partnered with Pukúu Cultural Community Services, a social services nonprofit created by the tribe, and Aszkenazy Development, Inc., to build Elderberry House.
The FTBMI received funding through several partnerships, including the California Housing Community Development Department (HCD) and the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation. It also applied for funding from the Homekey Tribal Program – which provides tribal entities an opportunity to develop permanent housing for persons experiencing or at risk of homelessness.
The building is estimated to be finished in two years, but due to economic factors, Ortega Jr. explained that it could take longer to complete the project.
“With everything that’s going on with the federal government and then the tariffs, we might have to incur some extra additional cost outside of the grants we secured,” he said. “We’re looking to see how we can secure funding for those incidentals that may cause prices to go up down the line.”
In addition to FTBMI citizens, the groundbreaking ceremony on July 18 was attended by community partners and local officials, including City of San Fernando Mayor Mary Mendoza; Gustavo Velasquez, HCD director; Pamela Villaseñor, executive director of Pukúu Cultural Community Services; and Jonah Glickman, housing and homelessness liaison for LA County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath.
“When we’re working with permanent affordable housing, it’s one thing to build. It’s another thing to keep your tenants housed,” Villaseñor told the San Fernando Valley Sun/el Sol. “In this case, our tenants are community members. They’re our valued elders and we need to ensure that we are giving them competent services, such as nutrition, … ensuring that they have access to traditional foods like their ancestors.”
While this project is just getting off the ground in terms of construction, Ortega Jr. said the FTBMI is constantly looking for property to purchase for affordable renting, as well as looking for affordable housing, throughout both the San Fernando and Santa Clarita valleys.
“We’re just [being] optimistic and seeing what kind of funding we can secure,” Ortega Jr. said.
“This is our first [building project] and we’re hoping that it leads to many more to come. This one has such significance because it’s literally about a few blocks away from our tribal headquarters,” said Ortega Jr. “We’re proud to be having our first one here in the City of San Fernando.”