Opened in 2009, PLACE, The WAV (Working Artists Ventura), is a sustainable affordable housing community. WAV (pronounced wave) opened as a state- of-the-art, sustainable village designed for artists and low-income households. Located in the cultural district of downtown Ventura, California, WAV provides affordable living and working space for artists of every kind; painters, sculptors, dancers, poets, musicians, filmmakers as well as affordable housing for the low-income population.
The WAV Theater Gallery offers performances, art openings and Arts venue for the WAV community artists. The WAV project is diverse with mixed-income families and individuals. One building, the Shore, offers Supportive Housing provides homes and services to those homeless, formerly homeless or at risk of homelessness. The entire community was designed and built to the highest standards of green building technology (LEED Silver Award), including recycled building materials, water and energy conservation, and renewable power from the sun.
AFFORDABLE LIVING
The WAV community provides sixty-nine live/work suites, all serving lower-income families and artists. With artists occupying many of the units, they were designed with high ceilings, plentiful light and open space. That’s why WAV offers fifty-four, affordable apartment especially designed with artists and their families in mind.
Fifteen apartments are specially funded to provide permanent supportive housing to the region’s most economically distressed families and individuals including young people aging out of the foster care system and recently homeless families. Rents are subsidized by HUD project-based Section 8 vouchers.
The Community Supportive Housing is a national movement proving to be extremely effective. The US Department of Health and Human Services reports that almost 84% of homeless households were still housed after one year in supportive housing, and emergency room visits were dramatically reduced saving health care costs.
THE WAV THEATER GALLERY
WAV integrates with the downtown community by offering venues for the WAV community activities. The space has provided exhibition and meeting space to WAV Community members for nominal fees.
SUSTAINABILITY
WAV is a LEED-Certified affordable housing project in Ventura, LEED designed buildings are healthier for the inhabitants and the environment, while conserving our precious natural resources, and increasing our energy security.