Hospitality House is on track to offer additional housing solutions to seniors—as early as this October! The nonprofit is currently in escrow to purchase the Sierra Guest Home, a 16-unit, assisted-living housing complex in Grass Valley.
“As a community, we understand that housing is a priority and each homeless services provider is working to do our part to address housing as appropriate,” said Nancy Baglietto, executive director of Hospitality House. “We work closely with City of Grass Valley, County of Nevada, the Continuum of Care and fellow nonprofit agencies to find creative housing solutions, and when Sierra Guest Home went up for sale, our goal was to preserve it to ensure not one unit was lost.”
Every available housing unit in Nevada County plays a part in reducing the number of people currently experiencing homelessness. On top of known housing shortcomings, most of the local homeless population is getting older, not younger. Hospitality House predominately serves seniors (60 percent are over the age of 50) and many lack the ability to pay for an apartment at growing market rates. Waiting lists for affordable housing units are well into the years, not weeks. The Sierra Guest Home offers immediate solution: create a shared living environment for housing-ready residents ages 60 or older with 24/7 staffing to help transition participants from homelessness to housing in a caring and affordable place.
There are a handful of residents currently living at Sierra Guest Home, all of whom Hospitality House has plans to care for with the transition of ownership. Current and future residents will receive three nutritious meals a day (prepared in an off-site commercial kitchen) and offered wraparound case management services as needed or requested by Hospitality House staff.
Hospitality House’s senior housing project will be shared in greater detail at the Aug. 24 City of Grass Valley City Council Meeting at 7 p.m. The project is in line with the building’s current use and zoning. Hospitality House was able to obtain competitive financing through the generosity of Banner Bank to move the project forward. Over time, Hospitality House will seek partnership opportunities with the City and County to compete for grant funds that could, in turn, renovate the existing buildings on the property and expand the number of units to give even more people an opportunity at affordable housing.
Creating affordable housing solutions isn’t new for Hospitality House. Between 2018 – 2021, Hospitality House played an instrumental role in the creation of the Brunswick Commons housing project in partnership with County of Nevada, City of Grass Valley and Regional Housing Authority. Forty units of subsidized housing is set to open this coming February.
Those interested in furthering the efforts of Hospitality House’s senior housing project are invited to send donations to Hospitality House, located 1262 Sutton Way, Grass Valley, CA 95945.