Ventura County recently hosted a ribbon cutting to celebrate Casa Pacifica, a new supportive housing development in Camarillo for young adults aged 18-25 years. Casa Pacifica, named after the project’s co-developer and main service provider, is a 27-home complex for young adults who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, including those who have “aged out" of the foster care system.

Funded in part by almost $6 million from HCD’s Homekey program and more from the California Department of Social Services’ Transitional Housing Program Plus, Casa Pacifica demonstrates just how well state funding can work in tandem to do great things. Designed to provide supportive homes for young adults and their children, resident services will include educational and career development, parenting classes, life skills training, and mental health care assistance.

As well as celebrating a new affordable housing development, the event was also a celebration of co-developer Casa Pacifica’s 30th anniversary. Casa Pacifica Centers for Children and Families provide transitional housing and mental health services to families and adolescents in Ventura and Santa Barbara counties. This most recent development, co-developed by the County of Ventura, stands as an excellent example what California communities can do to support youth who are transitioning from foster care or the juvenile justice system—or otherwise lacking the familial support so many take for granted.