Riverside City Council will vote Tuesday to accept $20.1 million in state funding and commit $9.5 million in local dollars to convert the Quality Inn at 1590 University Avenue into 114 studio apartments for homeless and low-income residents.
As of late November, 312 people had been prescreened for permanent supportive housing on the city's housing waitlist, with 219 awaiting placement. Ninety-one are 55 or older.
The project, now called University Terrace Homes, received its Homekey+ award in late November—one of five projects statewide announced by Gov. Gavin Newsom on December 23.
Tuesday's vote is the final approval needed after a 4-3 vote last May, with Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson casting the deciding vote.
Business owners near the site—including the Bailey family, whose Farmhouse Collective opened just weeks before the committee vote—raised concerns about the project's impact. Supporters pointed to the motel's troubled history: 164 police calls since January 2024.
Councilmember Clarissa Cervantes, who chairs the Housing and Homelessness Committee, said Riverside can't afford to turn down the funding. "Riverside is in no position to say 'no' to over $21 million of state grant funding when we are tightening our budgets," she said. "This is fiscally responsible and morally imperative." Councilmember Steve Robillard, who voted against the application, had called for guaranteed wraparound services—concerns the six-case-manager staffing model aims to address.
Council members will vote to accept the state's $20,137,410 Homekey+ grant and commit $9.5 million in federal and state housing funds already allocated to the city.
The total project cost is $29.7 million—down from the $31.7 million estimated when council authorized the application in May.
Riverside Housing Development Corporation, a nonprofit that has operated affordable housing in Riverside County since 1991, will acquire, renovate, and operate the property. The organization secured 94 Project-Based Section 8 vouchers from the county Housing Authority in September, which will subsidize rent for most residents.
City Manager Mike Futrell has described permanent supportive housing as "the final step in the rungs of the ladder that we've been missing for a long time."
University Terrace Homes would be Riverside's largest permanent supportive housing development. Other such projects include Mulberry Cottages (10 units in Ward 1, opened 2023), The Aspire (32 units for transitional-aged youth in Ward 1, opened 2025), and Vista de La Sierra (40 units integrated into affordable family housing in Ward 7, opened 2024). Another 22 units at Sunrise at Bogart in Ward 7 are under construction.
The project would house 94 individuals experiencing homelessness with behavioral health challenges, plus 20 very low-income residents. Eighteen units are accessible.
Homekey+ rules require projects to be completed within 14 months of the award.
Six case managers will be assigned to the property: four through City Net and two city employees.
Since May, city staff and the developer have held monthly meetings with University Avenue businesses.
Cervantes said the project "will have a positive impact on the neighboring Eastside and University communities."
The Homekey+ award follows Riverside's "Prohousing" designation in 2023, which gives the city priority access to competitive state grants.
City Council meets Tuesday, January 13 at 6:15 p.m. in the Art Pick Council Chamber, 3900 Main St. Meetings are streamed live on the city's website and YouTube channel.
