We’re creating a new veterans housing community in Novato that can end veteran homelessness in Marin County!   Your gift will help make history as the county becomes the second in California to reach that goal.

The project expands our supportive housing programs in Novato with 24 small apartments for unhoused veterans. Community support has kept these homes for heroes moving steadily toward completion in 2024.

Housing for veterans is Phase 1 of a larger development that will provide workforce housing and space to grow our social enterprise businesses. The later phase adds 26 apartments for individuals and families transitioning out of homelessness and a manufacturing bakery, plus teaching and office space for our culinary team.

Basic site work for the whole 2.7-acre parcel will be completed this winter, with the veterans building expected to open in summer. You can review the site plan for an overall view or see a floor plan of the veterans housing.

Homeward Bound has served veterans through its entire 49-year history.  For the last 23 years, we have offered reserved beds and offered specialized services at the New Beginnings Center shelter in a partnership with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. We also host a Veterans Affairs representative at our site. In the year ending June 30, 2022, our programs served 54 veterans.

With community partners, Homeward Bound has identified veterans in Marin who lack stable housing. We expect our new program will be able to accommodate everyone on that list.

“This significant and timely project marks a milestone for our community,’ says Mary Kay Sweeney, Co-Chief Executive Officer for Homeward Bound. “Ending veteran homelessness is a goal that we have all been working toward because it’s absolutely the right thing to do.”

Key funding to launch the new veterans housing comes from a $4 million California state budget allocation; a $3 million grant from the California Veterans Housing and Homelessness Prevention Program; a $2 million commitment from the County of Marin, and $2.2 million from Marin Community Foundation. The project also received a federal budget allocation of $750,000 and a $400,000 grant from The Home Depot Foundation, with support for pre-development costs from  the City of Novato and Tamalpais Pacific.

We’d love to tell you more about the visionary scope of the project and how the veterans housing will provide the support for people to transform their futures. For more information about the Hamilton HUD Parcel project or to learn about funding opportunities, please email us or call 415-382-3363 x216.