Creating Spaces for All

Providing Opportunities for a Fuller Life

Named for the Greek word meaning holistic, Holos Communities, formerly Clifford Beers Housing, is a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating spaces for all people. With the goal of providing opportunities for a fuller life, we approach the creation of spaces through a holistic lens as we work to end homelessness, combat global warming, and reverse racial inequity. Our spaces provide homes, services and jobs to individuals, families, and businesses while helping to strengthen neighborhoods and local economies. We measure the impact of our work by using several factors including the quality of life of our residents, the efficiency with which we can create new spaces and our ability to create innovative solutions to the complex problems we face.

Impact

The cost of housing affects us all; from those experiencing homelessness to working class families and small businesses fearing displacement from rising rents. We house over 750 people, 62% of whom identify as BIPOC. Having a stable and affordable home enables parents to save for their children’s future and helps students to excel in school. The construction and operation of our spaces has created 39 permanent jobs and over 1300 temporary jobs. Helping small businesses thrive keeps improves the odds of maintaining stable housing for its own owners while they reinvest in the local economy. Using Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs as a guide, we begin by meeting our resident’s physiological needs including shelter, air and water and hope to be able to move up the pyramid to tackle more complex needs like addressing mental illness, substance abuse, chronic health conditions, safety and belonging through our integrated supportive services in our buildings.

Innovation

The housing crisis is undoubtedly linked to the fight against global warming and  racial inequity and require a holistic solution. We cannot continue to build affordable housing while ignoring drought or extreme heat; we must increase our resilience against extreme climate. We cannot build affordable housing without an awareness of how racism has resulted in BIPOC communities facing housing insecurity. We cannot be content to work within ineffective systems and with limited tools that are unable to produce as much housing as we need. The challenges that face us require a fearless positivity; building in the now while forging tools for the future.

Communities

Spaces

For us, creating spaces is an act of community building. Our buildings exist within ecosystems where people live, work and are provided opportunities to lead fuller lives. This includes a commitment to the creation of green spaces, building near public transit to reduce the need for cars and parking and the inclusion of commercial spaces that allow small businesses and their employees to thrive and combat gentrification — gentrification occurs when one group of individuals is displaced from their homes by another group with greater purchasing power. It is our goal not only to provide homes for our most vulnerable neighbors, but to provide a range of economic, environmental, and equitable benefits to the communities that we are honored to serve.

13

Staff Members

50%

BIPOC Leadership

60%

BIPOC Staff

62%

BIPOC Board

40%

Female Staff

53%

Female Board

Staff

  • Cristian Ahumada

    Executive Director

    Cristian has trained Tae Kwon Do for over 35 years.

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  • Dylan Coyle

    Advancements Project Manager

    Dylan hikes the mountains of LA when he’s not in the office.

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  • Yulisa Chavez

    Assistant Project Manager

    Yulisa hopes to one day visit all 30 MLB stadiums.

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  • Joseph Louie

    Asset Management Associate

    Joseph is an avid camper and loves outdoor activities such as hiking, biking, and backpacking.

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  • Lety Muro

    Assistant Project Manager

    Enjoys having one too many cups of coffee!

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  • Leora Nessim

    Office Manager

    Leora is on a mission to be on a first-name basis with all dogs.

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  • Logan O'Phelan

    Director of Operations

    Logan is always training for a long hike in the Sierras.

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  • Audrey Peterson

    Advisor

    Audrey is open to any and all hot chicken sando recommendations.

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  • Michael Rangel

    Asset Manager

    Michael performs as a spoken word artist.

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  • Daniel Rojas

    Senior Project Manager

    Daniel once rode his bike from San Francisco to Los Angeles, and hopes to bike down the Baja Peninsula in the future.

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  • Matt Schauer

    Director of Real Estate Development

    Matt speaks Mandarin.

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  • Josh Siegel

    Assistant Project Manager

    Josh is a fan of emotional equilibrium.

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  • Mercedes Spina

    Staff Accountant

    When not crunching numbers, you can find Mercedes at the pottery wheel.

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  • Dory Warton

    Senior Accountant

    Dory never gets tired of crunching numbers, loves chocolates and sports.

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  • John Yoon

    Director of Asset Management

    John is addicted to cheeseburgers.

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Board

History

Clifford Beers’s autobiography, “A Mind That Found Itself” (1908), was a groundbreaking tale of his experience in various psychiatric hospitals, where he and his fellow patients experienced horrific abuses. The bestselling book aroused a storm of protest and public concern about the care of people with mental illness. In his book, Beers called for the creation of a mental health advocacy organization that would work to improve treatment for those with mental illness, reduce stigma, promote recovery, and prevent hospitalization.

With Beers’ vision as the catalyst, the mental health movement in the US, which evolved into the organization known as Mental Health America (MHA), was born. Finding that permanent housing is key for health and well-being, Mental Health America Los Angeles founded Clifford Beers Housing (CBH) in 2005. Since then, CBH has successfully carried out its mission to develop permanent supportive housing for the most vulnerable. This model has proven successful throughout the country in reducing homelessness and increasing community reintegration. CBH became an independent organization in 2015 and changed its name to Holos Communities in 2022.

 

Awards

  • King 1101 Apartments

    National Design Award, Excellence in Affordable Housing by AIA (American Institute of Architects)

  • Vistas del Puerto

    Merit Award from the Westside Urban Forum


    Enterprise Community Partners

    Community Partner of the Year

  • Isla Intersections

    Sustainability Awards - Housing Innovation from the Southern California Association of Governments

    Vistas del Puerto

    Homes Within Reach Awards - Permanent Supportive Housing Development from the Southern California Association of Nonprofit Housing

  • Clifford Beers Housing

    Design Advocate Award from the American Institute of Architects Los Angeles Chapter

    King 1101 Apartments

    Los Angeles Architectural Housing Award from the Los Angeles Business Council

  • Burlington Family Apartments

    Project of the Year Award, from the U.S. Green Building Council

    28th Street Apartments

    A+ Jury’s Choice Award for Architecture and Preservation, from Architizer

  • 28th Street Apartments

    National Honor Award for Architecture, from AIA National

  • 28th Street Apartments

    Preservation Award, from the Los Angeles Conservancy

    Award of Excellence in the Mutli-Family Housing category from the LA Business Council – Los Angeles Architectural Awards

    Westside Prize Multi Unit Housing HONOR Award, from the Westside Urban Forum

    Historic Preservation Award from the City of Los Angeles

    Preservation Design Award for Rehabilitation, from the California Preservation Foundation

    Merit Award forArchitecture from the AIA California Council

    Housing Award at the World Architecture Festival in Singapore

    Honor Award for Excellence in Architectural Design, from AIA Los Angeles

    Special Needs Project of the Year Award from the Southern California Association of Nonprofit Housing

    NoHo Senior Villas

    Award of Merit for Best Seniors Housing Community, from Gold Nugget Award

  • The Courtyards in Long Beach

    Special Needs Project of the Year Award, from the Southern California Association of Nonprofit Housing

  • The Courtyards in Long Beach

    1000 HOMES Innovation in Community Improvement Award from the Urban Land Institute

    Elm Avenue Apartments

    1000 HOMES Innovation in Community Improvement Award, from the Urban Land Institute

  • Elm Avenue Apartments

    Long Beach Heritage Historic Preservation Award

Partners

Organization Funders

Creating affordable homes depends on a wide variety of funding sources, donors and foundations. Holos Communities is grateful to the following grantors that make our work possible.

Joint Ventures

Holos Communities has joint ventures with these co-developers.

Project Financing

Holos Communities extends our thanks to these funders for making our projects possible.

Operations

Our excellent service providers coordinate mental health, life skills, and other services to help our residents stay in their homes and improve their lives. Our professional, on-site property managers ensure that our buildings are beautifully maintained.

Property Management

Support Service Providers

Building

Our architects help us design sustainable spaces that meet the needs of the populations we aim to serve. Our contractors bring our vision to life, building new sites and adapting existing ones to create apartments for all.

Architects

Contractors

Consultants

Contact us

Don’t hesitate to drop us a line using the contact form below and someone will follow up with you as soon as possible.