Project Homekey Celebrates Grand Opening

The City of Richmond celebrated the grand opening of the Civic Center Apartments on Friday, a Homekey-funded permanent supportive housing project developed through a partnership between the City and 425 Civic Center LP.  

Speakers at the event included Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, Contra Costa County Supervisor John Gioia, Mayor Eduardo Martinez, and Richmond City Manager Shasa Curl, who is set to retire this week.

“The grand opening of the Civic Center Apartments is a win for our neighbors experiencing homelessness in Richmond and across Contra Costa County,” said Mayor Eduardo Martinez. “Project Homekey, together with county and city funding, helped turn this former Motel 6 into much-needed permanent supportive housing that will serve the community well. We’re grateful to our partners for making this vision a reality in the City of Richmond.” 

The city acquired the former Motel 6 at the corner of 24th and Preble Avenue in 2024 and then leased the property to the development partnership for its rehabilitation and long-term operation as supportive housing for individuals experiencing homelessness. 

The project converted the motel into permanent supportive affordable housing. The development includes 48 studio apartments for extremely low-income households earning up to 30 percent of area median income, plus one manager’s unit, for a total of 49 units.  

Richmond secures $14 million state grant to transform Motel 6 into supportive housing

Richmond has received a State of California Homekey grant to purchase and rehabilitate the Motel 6 on 24th Street into 48 supportive housing units for unsheltered individuals. Homekey, a statewide initiative, aims to provide and rapidly increase housing availability for individuals facing homelessness or at risk of becoming homeless. Richmond

Grandview IndependentSoren Hemmila

Funding for the project was provided by $14.5 million from the State of California’s Homekey Program, $1 million in Contra Costa County Community Development Block Grant funding, and $10.3 million in funding from the City of Richmond.

Civic Center Apartments will be managed by MPI Homes, and Hope Solutions will provide on-site wraparound services, including case management, mental health care, substance use services, linkage to physical care, benefits counseling and advocacy, basic housing retention skills, educational services, and employment services.