Courtesy photos.
VENTURA COUNTY — Housing Trust Fund Ventura County (Housing Trust Fund VC) welcomed a full room of community leaders to its Annual Meeting on February 27th at the Westview II Community Room in Ventura. The event highlighted key milestones, including a $58 million pipeline to fund affordable housing and $44.2 million raised since 2013, resulting in 1,780 affordable apartments and homes committed, funded, and produced throughout Ventura County. Attendees had the opportunity to provide feedback and ask questions regarding Housing Trust Fund VC’s products and services while gaining insights into the organization’s impact.
With local, state, and federal funds diminishing, Housing Trust Fund VC also leveraged this meeting to bring together a panel of impact investing experts representing wealth management, the business sector, impact investment strategies, and a nonprofit that has long been strategically establishing impact funds in support of its region’s affordable housing needs. Danielle Borja, Julie Mahowald, Barry Peterson, and Kevin Schuster explored how impact investing can drive solutions to the region’s housing crisis while generating sustainable financial returns. “If we are doing our role well, we can absorb risk. As a foundation, maybe the market sees something as risky, but we don’t,” said Kevin Schuster, Senior Manager, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative. “Our role is to come in early and structure our funding in a way that can make traditional market investors more comfortable and reveal that the risk was only perceived.” Attendees were given the opportunity to ask questions directly to the panel.
A powerful statement of support came from Claudia Armann, Executive Director of the McCune Foundation, who spoke via video about the partnership between Housing Trust Fund VC and the McCune Foundation and their shared commitment to the belief that everyone deserves a home. “Housing affordability remains one of the most pressing challenges in California,” said Linda Braunschweiger, CEO of Housing Trust Fund Ventura County. “By getting creative and leveraging a network of funding sources, we are proving that strategic investments can transform communities and serve as a model for addressing housing needs statewide.”
The annual meeting also included remarks from Ken Trigueiro, Housing Trust Fund VC 2025 Board Chair and CEO/President, People’s Self-Help Housing, followed by the presentation of the 2024 Annual Report from Tracy McAulay, 2023/24 Chair, Housing Trust Fund VC and Housing Solutions Director, Community Development, County of Ventura. The report highlighted the organization’s recent achievements, including Housing Trust Fund VC’s recognition by Assemblymember Steve Bennett as a 2024 Nonprofit of the Year and the success of the “A Home for Education” symposium, a collaboration with the County of Ventura, CSU Channel Islands, Ventura County Office of Education, and the Ventura County P-20 Council.
Community members looking to support affordable housing in Ventura County are invited to attend Housing Trust Fund Ventura County’s annual Compassion Campaign on September 4th, at the picturesque Walnut Grove at Tierra Rejada Farms in Moorpark. To learn more about this event or to see the full Housing Trust Fund Ventura County 2024 Annual Report, visit www.housingtrustfundvc.org/