Santa Clara VTA announces new Branham Light-Rail Station TOD project

The Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) is working to establish affordable housing in Silicon Valley and offer opportunities for homeownership for extremely low-income residents of Santa Clara County. 

Santa Clara VTA has entered into a long-term ground lease agreement with Charities Housing, which will build 45 townhomes on property next to Santa Clara VTA’s Branham Light-Rail Station. The agency notes that while most affordable and low-income housing being built in the San Francisco Bay Area is rental property, the development going up next to Santa Clara VTA’s Branham Light-Rail Station will be townhomes for sale. 

Santa Clara VTA says about a quarter of the units will be designated for extremely low-income residents, earning 30 percent of the median income in Santa Clara County or less. The Santa Clara VTA notes this type of housing is a first for the agency, as it builds its portfolio of transit-oriented development (TOD). 

“At [Santa Clara] VTA, we are proud to be on the cutting edge of this opportunity, and we hope this is just the beginning, with other projects and developers following suit,” said Santa Clara VTA General Manager and CEO Carolyn Gonot.  

The Santa Clara VTA says the Branham homeownership project is one of several new housing projects benefiting from a cooperative agreement between the agency and the Santa Clara County Office of Supportive Housing, which manages funds from the 2016 Measure A Affordable Housing Bond.   

“This project is a good example of [Santa Clara] VTA’s role as a leader in solving problems in our community,” said Santa Clara VTA Board Chair and Campbell Mayor Sergio Lopez. “Hopefully we are paving the way for future innovations in affordable housing solutions.” 

Anticipating that some of the homes will be sold again in future years, the Santa Clara VTA says the affordable area median income levels will be guaranteed in perpetuity through recorded deed restrictions administered by the Office of Supportive Housing.  

The Branham townhome project recently received a grant from Destination Home, a public-private partnership that has funded thousands of affordable homes throughout Santa Clara County. In addition, because Santa Clara VTA qualified for a Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) Priority Sites designation in 2023, the Branham homeownership project has also earned a grant from MTC.   

“The county of Santa Clara, MTC and Destination: Home have provided the critical early-phase financing needed to get the project off the ground and to leverage additional funding sources going forward, according to  Charities Housing Executive Director Mark Mikl, who notes that  “Charities Housing appreciates the trust our public and private partners have placed in us to complete this innovative development.”  

Through partnerships with nonprofits, private developers and public sector agencies, Santa Clara VTA says its TOD program allows developers to lease under-utilized Santa Clara VTA properties near transit.