SANTA MONICA, Calif. (KNX) — More than 100 people whose families were forced out of Santa Monica during construction of the Interstate 10 Freeway and other projects decades ago have applied for new housing opportunities offered by a city program.
In a move to “right a historic wrong” as Santa Monica City Councilmember Kristin McCowan put it in The Los Angeles Times, the Below Market Housing pilot program, which launched in January, looks to match families and their descendants who were displaced during urban development projects in the city during the 1950s and 1960s.
"The African American neighborhood thrived in the Belmar Triangle until the 1950s when it literally went up in smoke in the name of urban renewal," according to the city's website. "The land was taken away by eminent domain to make way for the City's expanded Civic Center, which included an Auditorium and the Los Angeles County Courthouse. The City burned down homes and businesses both rented and owned by African Americans and other marginalized groups."
An estimated 600 families lost their homes when the I-10 was built through the Pico neighborhood, according to The Times.
"We created this program in the earnest hope that former Santa Monica residents take advantage of this new affordable housing opportunity," Mayor Sue Himmelrich said in a statement to Patch. "If you know community members who were displaced in the 1950s and 1960s, we ask for your assistance in sharing the pilot information so we can identify as many candidates as possible.”
The program, which will provide priority in city-funded housing and inclusionary housing for up to 100 applicants, will remain open to applicants through Feb. 22.
Applicants can be from households or descendants of households (children or grandchildren) who were displaced, city officials said.
If more than 100 households apply within the first 30 days of the application period, a lottery will be conducted, according to Patch.
While the city program initially will only be open to 100 displaced families or their descendants who earn limited incomes, city leaders hope their efforts will grow into a national model to address past racist policies.
Nationwide, more than 1 million people lost their homes in just the first two decades of interstate construction alone, as highway planners targeted many Black neighborhoods for destruction, and displaced families often received little compensation, according to The Times.
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