The vacant former Quality Inn on De La Vina Street will be turned into permanent supportive housing for 32 residents
by Rebecca Caraway, Noozhawk Staff WriterNovember 8, 2025 | 8:52 pm
What once served as a place for temporary stays will soon be a permanent home for formerly homeless people and those at risk of becoming homeless.
The Housing Authority of the City of Santa Barbara is starting construction on the former Quality Inn at 3055 De La Vina St. in Santa Barbara, turning the vacant motel into permanent supportive housing for 32 residents.
Rob Fredericks, executive director of the Housing Authority of Santa Barbara, said turning the motel into housing not only gives the property a second life, but a second chance to residents.
“This project isn’t just a project, it’s a promise,” Fredericks said. “It’s a promise to the residents that are going to live here. It’s a promise to the Samarkand neighbors that we’re going to be good neighbors.”
The former shabby faux French motel will be redesigned in a Spanish Colonial style with 32 studio units, one manager unit, offices for support services, a community room, laundry room, and 17 vehicle parking spaces situated next to the Santa Barbara Surgery Center and across the street from Starbucks.
Residents will have access to onsite services such as physical and mental health care provided by New Beginnings Counseling Center.
“Moving from the streets, you need ongoing supportive services to really ensure that the residents’ needs are taken care of, and they’re able to comply with lease agreements and that they’re good neighbors themselves,” Fredericks said.
Kristine Schwarz, executive director of the New Beginnings Counseling Center in Santa Barbara, said on-site services will include community events for residents, making sure they have basic items for their home, as well as a nurse, behavioral health specialist, and an addiction specialist.
“We have a long history with the housing authority; we’ve partnered with them for 15 years or more on several different properties very successfully,” Schwarz said. “So we’re excited. We’re already planning where we can have things that can really help to make this place a home.”
The $18 million project has been fully funded by the city of Santa Barbara, a loan from the Santa Barbara Foundation, Banc of California, and the Homekey+ program.
Homekey+ is a state program that started during the pandemic that moved unhoused people into hotels and motels to lower infection risks. Now the program focuses on purchasing underutilized motels that can be turned into permanent housing.
The funding goes to developers, nonprofit developers, and housing authorities that agree to restrict the cost of the units for low income individuals, Fredericks explained.
“There are a lot of hurdles that they require that we do, but it’s shown to be a very effective way of meeting the needs of people who are homeless,” Fredericks said. “It’s quicker, too, rather than doing a brand new permanent supportive housing development, we just need to rehab the buildings.”
At the De La Vina Street site, residents will pay 30% of their income toward rent and will receive Section 8 voucher assistance.
Assemblyman Gregg Hart, D-Santa Barbara, celebrated that the redesigned building will improve the look of the neighborhood, while supporting residents in need.
“The services and the people that this project will serve, they are our neighbors, they are part of our family in Santa Barbara, and we have such an important role to play in helping lift them up,” Hart said.
The Housing Authority hopes to have the site ready for move-in by April.
In the meantime, the Housing Authority of the County of Santa Barbara is getting ready to break ground on the Hollister Lofts, a new permanent supportive housing community at 4560 Hollister Ave. in Goleta on Nov. 14.