Community Development Agency
www.santa-ana.org/cd
Item # 9
City of Santa Ana
20 Civic Center Plaza, Santa Ana, CA 92701
Staff Report
April 21, 2026
TOPIC: Request for Proposals for Affordable Housing Development
AGENDA TITLE
Authorize Issuance of a Request for Proposals for Affordable Housing Development
RECOMMENDED ACTION
Authorize the City Manager to issue a Request for Proposals for Affordable Housing Development to seek proposals for the development of affordable housing in the City of Santa Ana.
GOVERNMENT CODE §84308 APPLIES: No
DISCUSSION
Consistent with Section III of the Affordable Housing Funds Policies and Procedures (Policies) amended by City Council on August 18, 2020, the Community Development Agency is seeking City Council approval to issue a Request for Proposals (RFP) for the use of available affordable housing funds in support of developing affordable housing within the City. This will be an open RFP process and will provide sufficient time for applicants to identify an eligible site and complete and submit a proposal in response to the RFP (Exhibit 1).
Background
In support of and advancing the City of Santa Ana’s (City) goals and responsibilities under the Housing Element, the City periodically issues an RFP for use of available affordable housing funds to promote development of affordable housing within the City by private entities. Specifically, the Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA) is mandated by the State of California as part of the periodic process for updating the City’s Housing Element. The City is provided with a RHNA allocation to be met in eight (8) year cycles. The current RHNA cycle covers 2021 through 2029. The following table provides the City’s progress through 2025 in meeting the RHNA allocations for Very Low, Low, and Moderate Income households with respect to the 2021-2029 RHNA Goals:
Progress Towards 2021-2029 RHNA Goal
(New Housing Units by Category and Year)
Income RHNA 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 Total
Units
Total
Units
Remaining
% of
RHNA
Completed
Request for Proposals for Affordable Housing Development April 21, 2026
5 7
0 9
Very
Low 606 41 191 64 48 81 425 181 70%
Low 362 43 102 113 81 101 440 (78) 122%
Mod. 545 11 41 84 65 73 274 271 50%
Above
Mod. 1,624 639 567 2,281 70 61 3,618 (1,994) 223%
Total: 3,137 734 901 2542 264 316 4,757 (1,620) 152%
Based on building permits issued. Parentheses used to show number of units issued permits in excess of RHNA goal.
Through the issuance of this RFP, the City is seeking to meet the City’s 2021-2029 RHNA Goals before December 31, 2029. Issuance of this RFP for Affordable Housing Development also implements the City’s 2021-2029 Housing Element Goals # 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 and associated policies related to affordable housing production, rehabilitation, ownership, and fair housing (HE-1.1, 1.6, 2.4, 2.5, 2.7, 3.2, 3.3, 3.5, 3.7, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3,
4.4, 4.5, 5.1, 5.5, and 5.6). (Exhibit 2)
This RFP would also facilitate the spending of available HOME Investment Partnerships (HOME) Program funds to meet expenditure deadlines in 2028 and beyond.
Specifically, the City will need to expend a minimum of $1,363,623 by September 30, 2028, to avoid the recapture of the funds by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The following future expenditure deadlines are applicable to the City’s HOME Program funds:
Program Grant
Year HOME Grant # Grant Balance Expenditure
Deadline
2025 M-25-MC-06-0535 $1,159,062 9/30/2034
2024 M-24-MC-06-0535 $1,065,667 9/30/2032
2023 M-23-MC-06-0536 $1,445,100 9/30/2031
2022 M-22-MC-06-0537 $1,547,773 9/30/2030
2021 M-21-MC-06-0538 $1,312,064 9/30/2029
HOME
2020 M-20-MC-06-0539 $1,363,623 9/30/2028
Available Funds and Priorities
Available program funds may be used for affordable housing development loans for both affordable ownership and/or rental housing units. The available funds for this RFP include funds from the Inclusionary Housing Fund, HOME Program, HOME-American Rescue Plan Program, Housing Successor Agency Fund, and/or any other funds received by the City for affordable housing purposes. The available funds for this RFP are as follows:
Source Available Funds
Inclusionary Housing Funds $2,628,194
HOME Investment Partnerships Program $11,533,196
HOME – American Rescue Plan $715,622
Housing Successor Agency Funds $2,630,914
TOTAL: $17,507,926
Request for Proposals for Affordable Housing Development April 21, 2026
5 7
0 9
This RFP focuses on advancing the following priorities:
(1) Acquisition and rehabilitation of projects that consist of substantial rehabilitation and will impose long-term affordability covenants on the units. (2) Projects that will provide affordable homeownership opportunities. (3) By-right or shovel-ready projects. [A by-right project is one that can be approved administratively without discretionary approvals because it already complies with all applicable zoning and development standards. A shovel-ready project refers to a project that is fully prepared to begin construction immediately or within no more than three (3) months.]
Projects that comply with any of these three (3) priorities and objectives will receive 10 bonus points in the RFP scoring criteria.
Next Steps
With approval by City Council, the RFP for Affordable Housing Development is scheduled to be released on May 1, 2026. Responses to the RFP will be accepted and evaluated on an on-going basis for at least one year with four (4) quarterly deadlines to submit a proposal scheduled throughout the year:
Wednesday, July 1, 2026, 4:00 P.M.
Thursday, October 1, 2026, 4:00 P.M.
Monday, January 11, 2027, 4:00 P.M.
Monday, May 3, 2027, 4:00 P.M.
The RFP will be published on PlanetBids; both the City and Housing Authority’s websites; a public notice will be published in the OC Register; an e-mail will be sent out to Orange County’s largest affordable housing membership associations including the Kennedy Commission, 2-1-1 Orange County, and the Southern California Association of Nonprofit Housing; and a letter will be e-mailed to interested developers and nonprofit organizations who had previously requested to be informed of development opportunities on the Community Development Agency’s RFP Process Database. Developers and nonprofit organizations interested in being added to the RFP Process Database can do so by contacting the City’s Housing Division.
In compliance with the City’s Policies, after each deadline, staff will conduct a minimum threshold review of each proposal to ensure the proposal complies with all of the minimum requirements in the RFP. Following the minimum threshold review, staff will form a Review Panel that consists of at least one (1) employee from the City’s Public Works Agency, Planning and Building Agency, and Community Development Agency, and one (1) outside agency or government entity. If an employee is not available in one (1) City agency, a second employee may be requested from one (1) of the other two (2) agencies so long as there are at least two (2) of the three (3) City agencies represented on the Review Panel.
Request for Proposals for Affordable Housing Development April 21, 2026
5 7
0 9
The process outlined in the Policies requires that the Review Panel use the proposal scoring and selection criteria from the RFP to conduct their review and analysis of each proposal. The Review Panel will also review the proposed project design for appropriateness for the proposed target group, compatibility with surrounding uses, cost effectiveness of construction, and appropriateness of the design and construction for low maintenance and long-term sustainability. If the Review Panel determines, in its discretion, that one or more proposals may be recommended for approval, the Housing Division will request an underwriting and subsidy layering review by a real estate advisor selected by the City.
Following the RFP process, proposal review, and underwriting and subsidy layering review, a pre-loan commitment letter may be drafted by the Housing Division, reviewed and approved by the Housing Division Manager, the City Attorney’s Office, and the Executive Director of Community Development, before being recommended for approval by City Council.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact associated with this action.
EXHIBITS
1. Request for Proposals for Affordable Housing Development
2. City’s 2021-2029 Housing Element Goals # 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 and Associated Policies
Submitted By: Michael L. Garcia, Executive Director, Community Development Agency Approved By: Alvaro Nuñez, City Manager