Affordable apartment complex for foster youth opens in downtown San Jose
SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) -- Nine young adults transitioning out of the foster system are moving into their new apartments in downtown San Jose.
On Thursday an open house was held at the Roosevelt Park Apartments.
Gisell Duran said when she first entered the foster care system, she never imagined her own space.
TAKE ACTION: Community resources for foster care families, individuals
"This whole transition has been so smooth and yeah I just feel really good," Duran said.
The 22-year-old said the apartment is not just a place to live - it's a launching pad into her future.
"I was worried about housing. I just felt like I outgrew the living with roommate situation," Duran said.
The nonprofit First Place for Youth partnered with First Community Housing to make this possible.
MORE: San Jose State University transforms historic luxury hotel into college dorms
First Place for Youth was founded 26 years ago in Oakland. They're now located throughout the state and have expanded to eight other states, helping with housing and support services.
CEO Thomas Lee said these young people will be able to stay at these affordable housing units for as long as they need.
"There's foster youth everywhere around us we just don't know. It's one of the most invisible issues that we need to make more visible," Lee said.
In Santa Clara County, there is a lack of specialized foster housing.
"You have to think about this for a second for someone to be in foster care after age 18 that means a lot of things did not line up perfectly for them," Lee said.
MORE: New San Jose supportive housing complex changes lives of formerly unhoused seniors
Group homes for children needing extra support closed in 2017 - but now, they can't always find placements with families, forcing them to stay at transitional sites.
In November, a county commission issued an urgent call to action. In response, the Department of Family and Children Services sent ABC7 this statement, saying in part:
"DFCS has added additional positions to support the transitional homes and activated overtime and supplemental staffing to ensure we have appropriate staffing at all times."
Lee hopes the Roosevelt Park Apartments inspire other private and public collaborations to make more housing like this.
"It's all about how would we set them up like our own children? How do we make sure they're given a comfortable safe place to live," Lee said.
