County gets state money to create rehab center at Cathedral City affordable senior community

Cathedral City will benefit from $23.7 million in state funding to Riverside County under a social-assistance program aimed at placing chronically homeless people in affordable housing units, officials said Wednesday.

The money will be applied to four projects: a rehab center for a Cathedral City senior-living community and three affordable housing projects in the city of Riverside, according to the Riverside University Health System.

"We are very pleased with the announcement of this funding and are excited to move forward to provide much-need permanent supportive housing for Riverside County," said Dr. Matthew Chang with the Riverside University Health System. "We look forward to these units becoming available starting in 2020."

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The California Department of Housing & Community Development disbursed the $23.7 million as part of an allotment from its No Place Like Home Program.

Work on the apartment buildings is slated to get underway next year.

Upon completion, the county will provide placement assistance using a voucher system for homeless individuals, including those with behavioral and substance-abuse problems.

In addition to paying for housing, the funds will be used to cover counseling and job assistance services.

According to the most recent survey by the county Department of Public Social Services, there are nearly 3,000 sheltered and unsheltered homeless people in the county. Officials believe that number falls short of the actual figure because many dispossessed individuals could not be located when the survey was taken in January.