Habitat for Humanity breaks ground on three new homes on Woolner August 24

The official kick-off to the construction phase of a three-home Solano-Napa Habitat for Humanity project was held on August 24, during a groundbreaking ceremony.

The affordable homes are being built on Fairfield surplus property on Woolner Avenue, provided by the City of Fairfield’s Housing Authority to Habitat for $0, due to the extent of work required to develop it and to ensure the long-term affordability of the homes and to help reduce project costs. The land appraised at $106,000.

The project’s located in a flood plain with site mitigation costs of approximately $130,000 above traditional site preparation costs. In December 2021, the City successfully applied to Solano County to provide $215,000 to the project to cover utility costs, an additional parcel for a soil retaining wall, and other predevelopment costs. Habitat used the funds from Solano County to grade and raise the land above the flood zone level.

“It’s an absolutely wonderful project in an area that desperately needed that kind of help,” Fairfield Mayor Harry Price said in an interview. He was one of the speakers at the ceremony.

Price noted it is a great opportunity for families to own their own homes. To qualify for this affordable homeownership opportunity, the new owners will need to earn no more than 80% of the area’s median income, currently live in substandard housing, and be willing to commit 500 hours of sweat equity to build their houses, according to information provided by Habitat for Humanity.

Occupants will pay no more than 30% of their gross income toward the first mortgage. Habitat also provides a second mortgage in an amount representing the difference between the loan amount the owner can pay and the appraised value of the home.

Each house is 1,289 square feet, with three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a one-car garage. Nancy Nelson, of OAG Architects in Benicia and a Green Valley resident, designed the homes, working on the tricky triangular-shaped property. She has been a volunteer with Habitat for Humanity for 12 years and has designed many houses for the group, including the six-bedroom veterans’ homes in Rio Vista and Dixon.

Habitat also received a $1 million Federal Community Project check that Reps. John Garamendi, D-Walnut Grove, and Mike Thompson, D-St. Helena, presented during a site ceremony in May. The funds will go to this project and others. Representatives for the two congressmen, and for state Sen. Bill Dodd, D-Napa, attended the event, as well as other city and county officials.

Habitat for Humanity is accepting public donations and volunteers for the project. If you’re interested, call (707) 422-1948, send an email to [email protected] or visit SolanoNapaHabitat.org.

The sport that's sweeping the nation comes to Fairfield!

The Allan Witt Park courts ribbon-cutting on August 18 was a huge success! Many community members, including pickleball, tennis, and futsal enthusiasts, showed up to help christen the courts. After the ceremony, attendees were able to participate in gameplay or watch demonstrations.

On August 26, Dina Kupfer from GoodDay Sacramento paid a visit to the pickleball courts and received a quick lesson on how to play. She interviewed Councilmember Scott Tonnesen, who was instrumental in leading the project of bringing pickleball to Fairfield!

The newly resurfaced courts include 16 pickleball courts, three tennis courts, and one futsal court. Currently, there is no need to make reservations, although that could change, especially as pickleball play is sweeping the nation as more people discover how fun and easy it is to play!

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