Century Villages at Cabrillo
Photography Credit: Nahid LaCiura
Architecture Firm: The Architects Collective
Full Credit List Below
TOUR DETAILS
“Homes are the cornerstone of a thriving and just society.”
AIA Los Angeles & AIA Long Beach / South Bay are very pleased to introduce our communities to Century Villages at Cabrillo (CVC): an inspiring and beautifully planned community designed to provide quality affordable housing and onsite supportive services.
Located in Long Beach, CA, Century Villages at Cabrillo (CVC) sits on 27 acres and is home to over 2,000 residents on any given night, including veterans, families, and individuals with special needs. CVC offers both permanent and transitional housing, complemented by a network of services and amenities with a range of collaborators.
Established in 1997, CVC transformed a former Naval housing base near the Port of Long Beach into a thriving community. By bringing together service providers, many of whom operate directly onsite, CVC leverages a collective-impact approach to break the cycle of homelessness for its residents. (Collective impact is a framework where organizations from different sectors work together towards a common goal.) Nearly every resident in permanent housing at CVC maintained their housing after one year—a testament to its success.
As the backbone organization, CVC serves as the steward, manager, and coordinator of the Villages community. CVC is a nonprofit affiliate of Century Housing, a group dedicated to financing, developing, and managing quality affordable housing across California.
Click here to learn more about Century Villages at Cabrillo.
TOUR HOSTS
Richard Prantis, AIA, LEED AP – Founding Principal, The Architects Collective (TAC)
Richard Prantis is the Founding Principal of Los Angeles-based The Architects Collective (TAC). Inspired by a mission to enrich lives through the practice of architecture, Richard’s work is focused on affordable housing in an effort to bring excellent design to those in need. Richard is concerned with the design of space and how it is experienced; indeed, architecture can evoke a sense of engagement, beauty, joy, dignity and security. Richard applies to the practice over 30 years of experience inarchitectural design, construction detailing and construction observation, providing insight and leadership on all TAC projects. Drawing inspiration from the regional context, Richard leads the analysis and design of buildings that integrate the honest expression of building materials, energy-efficient building design and connection to the outdoors. Richard has served on various AIA|LA committees focused on the intersection of public policy, design and homelessness and regularly lends his expertise to juries at architectural design programs throughout southern California. Whether traveling locally or internationally, Richard enjoys full immersion into a culture, observing urban form, public realm, housing typologies, lifestyle, history, art and music.
Kimberly Wee – Executive Director, Century Villages at Cabrillo (CVC)
As Executive Director of Century Villages at Cabrillo and Vice President of Residential Services, Ms. Wee oversees the services offered to residents in Century’s supportive housing developments. Ms. Wee has more than two decades of program development and contracts experience, which enables her to oversee Century’s intensive case management county contract, develop and evaluate programming for adults and youth, as well as support the larger backbone role that Century Villages at Cabrillo plays within the community. She supports a dedicated team of case managers and clinical staff that serve formerly homeless veterans, youth, and families. At the Villages at Cabrillo, she has worked collaboratively to strengthen and expand the community resulting in thousands of lives being transformed.
Ms. Wee began her work in social services and as an advocate for women in Connecticut more than 20 years ago. She received her Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree in Psychology at Central Connecticut State University. As an undergrad, she worked in the Women’s Center and the Counseling Center where she first began her work as a certified domestic violence counselor and sexual assault advocate. Her work as an undergrad led to being offered a prestigious graduate fellowship to study substance abuse and sexual assault on college campuses throughout the state.
In 1998, she relocated to California where she began working at a domestic violence shelter in Orange County which led to her career path in the field and to Long Beach. In 2000, she started her work in Long Beach at a domestic violence agency as Program Coordinator. She worked to integrate the shelter and agency into the new community and to build the program into the success it is today. She held several leadership positions in the agency including the Senior Director of Contracts and Quality Assurance. Ms. Wee remains active in the domestic violence movement as a graduate of BlueShield’s Strongfield Leadership Program, an intense 18-month statewide initiative for leaders in the domestic violence field and as a long time member and current president of End Abuse Long Beach. She is a graduate of the Leadership Long Beach Institute, class of 2020, and has recently joined their board of directors.
Oscar Alvarado – Senior Vice President of Housing Development, Century Affordable Development, Inc.
As Senior Vice President of Century Affordable Development, Inc., Oscar Alvarado supervises Century’s real estate development team which currently has over 2,000 affordable homes in its pipeline. During his tenure with Century, Mr. Alvarado has assembled and established a very productive, creative, and effective team of development professionals. His efforts have helped position Century as a regional leader in multi-phase and master-planned communities — an innovative and high- impact approach to addressing the local affordable housing and homelessness crisis. Mr. Alvarado has worked in affordable housing development in Southern California since 2005 and in that time, he has managed diverse projects serving families, seniors, veterans, the homeless, and the local workforce.
Prior to Century, he worked for Thomas Safran & Associates and A Community of Friends in Los Angeles. In his role, Mr. Alvarado manages the development team’s relationships with key lenders, investors, contractors, and other partners working with Century to identify, finance, and construct affordable and supportive housing. He received a B.A. in Political Economy at the University of California at Berkeley and a Masters of City and Regional Planning from Cornell University. Mr. Alvarado is a board member of American Family Housing, headquartered in Orange County, California.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
1. Participants will analyze how integrated campus planning and circulation design at Century Villages at Cabrillo (CVC) – a 27-acre supportive housing community serving low-income, formerly homeless individuals, families, and Veterans – support health, safety, and welfare outcomes by improving accessibility, wayfinding, and connections between housing, healthcare, and social services for vulnerable populations.
2. Participants will evaluate how design strategies for supportive care—such as co-locating housing, clinics, and social services—can enhance resident stability, promote healing and help break the cycle of homelessness, including the integration of health and wellness into the built environment through amenities such as on-site fitness facilities, outdoor recreation spaces (including a basketball court), and an expanding urban forest that supports both physical and mental health.
3. Participants will assess how sustainable site design elements, including stormwater capture within shared open spaces and pedestrian-oriented planning, contribute to environmental performance while fostering safe, healthy, and socially connected community environments. They will also have a chance to explore how new buildings at CVC achieve LEED Gold or Platinum certification, incorporating advanced energy efficiency features and award-winning environmental practices.
FULL CREDIT LIST – Building Credits
Interior Designer: Aylin Inel
TOUR MEETING SPOT
Click here to see and download the PDF for Driving Directions & the Campus Map.
PARKING
Details forthcoming.
THANK YOU TO THE FOLLOWING ORGANIZERS & PARTNERS!
