The Cabrillo Economic Development Corporation
Comprehensive Housing Services and Community Economic Development
Office space is available for lease at Cabrillo’s corporate building, located in Ventura near the Ventura County Government Center, restaurants and shopping. Space includes:
For more information, contact Tee Khamseng at 805-444-1333.
You are invited to support Cabrillo’s mission of affordable housing as a 2019 sponsor. Your organization will not only receive positive visibility and recognition, but you will make a difference in someone’s life. Cabrillo provides safe and secure housing for those who need it most, and creates a ladder of opportunity with enriching social and educational programs.
Download our Sponsorship Information packet, and contact Jeanette Villanueva, Director of Fund Development & Communications at [email protected]
Cabrillo will be collaborating with CSU,
Click Here to view a video of the presentation given by Cabrillo Residents Services Coordinators Gloria Solorzano and Diana Ortega to CSU, Channel Islands, students as a part of a Service Learning Project in the Chicano Studies Classes.
Zeeda Daniele, who joined the Cabrillo Economic Development Corporation’s Board of Directors in 1991, steps down.
Daniele has served in many board capacities over the years, including President, Vice President and on several committees. Please join us in thanking Zeeda for her many contributions and service.
Why did you choose to support Cabrillo?
Cabrillo believes that housing is the foundation for improving the lives of low-moderate income and under-served individuals and families. For more than 35 years, Cabrillo has put people first; through housing development, integrated programs and services that encourage housing stability and personal growth. I chose Cabrillo as much as we chose each other because of our common desire to change lives through affordable housing.
Why is our mission meaningful to you?
That’s too hard to answer. If you read Cabrillo’s mission of “Comprehensive housing and economic development services that encourage self-sufficiency for families lacking the most opportunity,” it is all meaningful. However, Cabrillo goes beyond this. Cabrillo is an organization with a lens that looks at housing, jobs, transportation and all the aspects that make neighborhoods countywide safe, strong and thriving.
What interests you the most?
Cabrillo’s housing development is most meaningful to me. Addressing the housing needs in an area desperately lacking housing for low to moderate incomes, special needs and seniors is critical. Cabrillo does this even when it’s unpopular to do so. I believe people living in America want their neighbors to live a better life. However, they struggle to overcome bias and myths regarding racial or social economic background, and how housing designed to address the needs of under-served households will influence the existing neighborhood.
What do you love about Cabrillo?
Everything! I love
What is your most vivid memory?
Attending my first grand opening of an affordable income/first-time buyer Cabrillo development in Oxnard. I remember meeting two wonderful families following the ribbon-cutting ceremony. One of the buyers was a young couple. The husband was a firefighter with just a few years on the job, and his wife was expecting their first child. He talked about being a third-generation Ventura resident and having almost given up on finding a home in the area. He also shared his hesitance in working with Cabrillo because he didn’t believe Cabrillo would recognize the needs and desperation of a middle-income family just starting out. Thankfully, his wife disagreed and signed them up for a Cabrillo workshop. Afterward, the couple drove around Ventura to see Cabrillo’s body of work, both for-sale and rental housing, for themselves. The rest is history. The second family was a large family. Both parents were farmworkers and residents at one of Cabrillo’s farmworker apartments. They expressed how moving from an apartment they shared with two other farmworker families into a Cabrillo rental project not only changed their lives — but their children’s lives and belief in what was possible. Together the parents and two of their children, now college graduates, started on an almost decade-long path to saving and preparing to own a home. The ceremony day exposed me to two very different families with very different life experiences, but the very same dream. A dream that without Cabrillo seemed out of reach.
CEO Message: Margarita H. de Escontrias
Cabrillo builds homes for people. However, how many do we need to build? In the State of California, we need to build 180,000 new homes every year. Moreover, state housing law asks every city in California to plan for their fair share of that housing as placement, which should occur everywhere in our state. But, how much do we need here locally?
Ventura County and our 10 incorporated cities are required to plan for 19,158 homes, according to the Regional Housing Needs Analysis (RHNA) goals for the period of 2014-2021. Individual cities are responsible for meeting their assigned housing goals, while the county government is responsible for housing construction in unincorporated areas. Are we close, or on track to meeting these goals? Sadly, no, according to the California Department of Housing and Community Development.
Over the previous eight-year cycle, statewide, we have not been building nearly enough. We need to identify ways to get housing built faster and more efficiently through our regulatory processes. We have state laws in place to ensure housing production. Coming out of the legislative session last year, housing advocates across the state were able to secure the 15 bills in the housing package signed into law. What a victory for us all! However, we must work toward a housing-jobs balance. There is a mismatch between demographics and housing — and between jobs and housing. We are losing jobs in Ventura County and not building enough housing to meet the increasing demands. Let us build right here in our county, YIMBY. Let us create jobs for our folk’s right here! It is not just that we need more supply; it is that we need more supply in the right places.
Cabrillo Economic Development Corporation is looking for talented staff to fill a variety of positions including:
Click the links for job descriptions, and fill out your application today!
Cabrillo Economic Development Corporation is pleased to announce it has received a $10,000 Edison International grant to help fund the 2019 Rodney Fernandez Leadership Fund STEM Scholarship Program.
The Rodney Fernandez Leadership Fund STEM Scholarship Program, created in 2011, honors the legacy of Rodney Fernandez, Cabrillo’s founder and Executive Director for 30 years (1981–2011). The Scholarship continues Fernandez’s legacy of community building by cultivating the leadership of residents to attain their goals, empower themselves and to take action and improve the quality of life in their communities.
The scholarship program provides funds for students who wish to pursue education and careers in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). To be eligible, students must be enrolled in and/or continuing college education, in the process of applying to an accredited institution, or enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate program, and household income must be less than or equal to 80 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI) for Ventura County. High school applicants must have a minimum GPA of 3.0 to apply.
Margarita H. de Escontrias, Cabrillo’s CEO, said this grant will allow Cabrillo to provide STEM scholarships for underrepresented groups and lift financial barriers for those with aspirations for careers in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math.
“Funding from Edison International enables Cabrillo to provide scholarships to motivated and talented students, many from immigrant families who are first-generation college students. These grants will help youths in our community to reach their educational and leadership potential. They will help diversify our workforce in these fields and benefit our community,” she said.
In 2018, Cabrillo awarded a total of $12,500 to 13 recipients and received a total of 21 applications for the Rodney Fernandez Leadership Scholarships.
“Each year, members of our scholarship review panel are deeply moved and touched by the applications and appreciate the applicants’ willingness to share their experiences and struggles as well as their triumphs,” said de Escontrias.
In addition to high quality, safe and secure affordable housing, Cabrillo creates a ladder of opportunity for its low-income residents through comprehensive housing services and educational programs, which include the Rodney Fernandez STEM Scholarship program.
Cabrillo will schedule applicant information sessions in the spring. Dates for these sessions, applications, and additional details will be available on the Cabrillo website (cabrilloedc.org) in April. Please contact the Resident and Community Services Department at [email protected] with any questions.
Cabrillo Economic Development Corporation has received a $15,000 grant from MUFG Union Bank Foundation to fund pre-development costs for a planned development for seniors in Buellton in Santa Barbara County.
“Funds from the MUFG Union Bank Foundation grant will help pay for the appraisal, marketing study, and some legal and city fees as part of pre-development,” said Eduardo Espinoza, Director of Real Estate Development at Cabrillo.
The Village Senior Apartments in Buellton is part of a larger plan known as the Village Specific Plan that encompasses about 23 acres, of which 11 acres are set-aside for residential use. Cabrillo’s project on a two-acre parcel calls for 49 one-bedroom, one-bath apartments with ADA amenities, healthy housing features, and social services for seniors ages 62 and older, plus one rental unit for an onsite manager, for a total of 50 units.
The plan also includes a 3,000-square-foot community room, a community garden, and pedestrian walking paths linking the residential communities to the park and future commercial center.
The apartment homes will be rent-restricted to 30 percent, 45 percent, and 50 percent of area median income.
“A previous grant from MUFG Union Bank Foundation provided assistance with pre-development costs on the Etting Road project in Oxnard. That grant funded legal, architectural and engineering fees,” Espinoza said. “We couldn’t move forward on new projects without the community support from partners like MUFG Union Bank NA.”
Cabrillo Economic Development Corporation has received an $11,000 grant from Bank of America in support of energy efficiency upgrades at the Santa Paulan Apartments in Santa Paula.
The grant is part of Bank of America’s commitment to building stronger communities and helping to accelerate the transition to a sustainable, low-carbon economy. The bank works with Cabrillo and other nonprofit housing developers to help fund energy efficiency upgrades, retrofits, solar and other green building efforts.
“Thanks in large part to partners like Bank of America we can continue to provide our residents with safe, comfortable living in a quality environment. Bank of America has truly made a difference at this property and in the lives of the residents who live at The Santa Paulan,” said Margarita H. de Escontrias, Cabrillo CEO.
Funding from Bank of America will help Cabrillo replace two heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) units at The Santa Paulan, a 150-unit senior living facility for residents ages 55 and older. The newer units have longer lifespans and use many recyclable parts, reducing the number of materials going into landfills.
“Energy efficiency upgrades, like those scheduled for The Santa Paulan, allow our senior tenants to enjoy better health and comfort levels, reduce operating costs and water waste, and improve our environmental footprint,” said Luz Soto, Director of Property Management and Resident Services at Cabrillo.
CEO Message from Margarita H. de Escontrias: As Thanksgiving approaches, I would like to express my gratitude for the generosity of our donors and community and business partners throughout the year. We can accomplish great things with your help.
Your gifts bring 
new opportunities to move forward with more affordable housing projects and provide necessary educational, health and support services to low-income families, farmworkers, seniors, veterans and individuals with disabilities in our community.
I am truly grateful to you for continuing to keep Cabrillo and our mission on your minds during the holiday season with your Amazon Smile purchases, and Giving Tuesday and year-end donations.
I am excited about the difference we can make together with the support of our community and dedicated staff with Phase II of Snapdragon Place under construction and our new development on Etting Road in predevelopment. These two projects alone will provide 64 units of much-needed housing for veterans, low-income families and farmworkers.
On behalf of Cabrillo, I wish you a wonderful holiday season and a joyous New Year.
805-659-3791
702 County Square Drive, 
805-659-3791
702 County Square Drive, Ste 200 
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