CANOGA PARK PROJECT TO MIX SOCIAL SERVICES AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING.

Byline: Dana Bartholomew Staff Writer

CANOGA PARK - In a first for Los Angeles, an award-winning developer may soon combine affordable housing, a new charter school and a Boys & Girls Club, officials announced Wednesday.

The Canoga Park complex, which received the go-ahead by Los Angeles city officials Wednesday, would address a critical housing and school desk shortage while supplying broad support for working families.

``I'm very excited about it,'' said City Controller Laura Chick, who as a Valley councilwoman representing the area enlisted city support last year for the project called Tierra del Sol.

``Once again, the Valley will be a leader and innovator for the rest of the city for showing the way. Because this isn't just about housing, it's about schools and child care for working families and meeting the needs of our residents.''

The $20 million facility planned for five acres at Canoga Avenue and Saticoy Street is spearheaded by New Economics for Women - a Los Angeles-based agency founded 16 years ago by Latina feminists to help single mothers reach economic self-sufficiency.

Tierra del Sol, according to its founders, would provide 119 affordable apartments within 45,000 square feet of open play areas along Alabama Avenue.

A 3,500-square-foot learning center would provide space for after-school instruction, computers and other activities. A 15,000-square-foot community center would also make room for the West Valley Boys & Girls Club, now negotiating to run the facility.

And - unique to any NEW facility - a charter elementary school for 390 students from kindergarten through fifth grade and a 10,000-square-foot gymnasium would erase the need for school buses.

``We totally support this project,'' said Ralph Esparza, assistant general manager for housing development for the Los Angeles Housing Department. ``It's unique because it's the first project associated with a charter school.''

What makes the NEW program especially attractive to city officials is its heavy approach to management.

Typical of its six low-income housing complexes are strict rules, agreed upon by applicants, that require tenants to meet with caseworkers four times a year and attend workshops in parenting and economic development.

Children under 5 must be supervised at all times. And after 9:30 p.m., children may not hang out in common courtyards.

The NEW agency, which began serving residents in East Los Angeles, has six facilities serving 500 residents and is credited with reducing crime 17 percent near its La Posada hotel redevelopment downtown.

For its innovative work at combining low-income housing with child care, job counseling and tightly supervised facilities, it won a three-year Sustained Excellence Award from the Fannie Mae Foundation.

``They're awesome,'' said Laura McGrath, a Fannie Mae director of strategic planning in Washington, D.C. ``NEW is the definitive innovator, the cutting edge. ... They really take the time to consider all the angles.''

Funding for Tierra del Sol is provided by $3.3 million in city grants, tax credits, loans and foundation support. Negotiations are under way for academic support from the Los Angeles Unified School District.

The lot, a weedy, graffiti-covered plot once owned by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, cost $3.4 million and is largely surrounded by gated apartments. Organizers and city officials say the synergy of funding and social services provides a greater bang for the buck.

``We want to serve the needs of all families in the San Fernando Valley,'' said Dan Falcon, development consultant for the New Economics for Women. ``NEW wants to make sure families take advantage of every opportunity to progress up the ladder.''

With approval from city planners, Tierra del Sol would break ground in December and open the following year, he said. Rents, which average almost $1,300 a month for a two-bedroom flat in the neighborhood, might range between $450 and $750.

Neighbors of the complex, however, have mixed feelings about the development.

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Tierra del Sol