Celebrating Twenty Years of Building Community
Venice has long been a highly diverse community; home to African Americans who were restricted from home ownership in other parts of L.A., low-income Latinos displaced by freeway development, starving artists, and older citizens on fixed incomes.
In 1988, the Mayor identified an emerging housing crisis in Los Angeles fueled -- especially on the coast -- by escalating rents and property values. The resulting gentrification was already threatening the rich diversity that made up the Venice community.
The same year, Venice Community Housing Corp. (VCHC) was founded with a mission to preserve, maintain and expand affordable housing opportunities for low-income families in Venice and the surrounding neighborhoods. Since its founding, VCHC has added 13 buildings to its stock of affordable housing.
In 1994, a vicious gang war raged throughout Venice and surrounding areas killing and injuring 74 people in a nine month period. In response, VCHC added economic development opportunities and family support services to its mission.
Today, VCHC provides affordable housing in Venice and Mar Vista for nearly 500 low-income people and continually works to meet the needs of the low-income community through its programs.
