HOUSING : Opening the Doors to Home Ownership

New townhomes for 16 San Gabriel Valley families will sprout up in Duarte this summer, transforming low-income renters into proud homeowners.

The project, coordinated by the San Gabriel Valley branch of Habitat for Humanity, will break ground Saturday at 606 Euclid Ave.

Habitat for Humanity, boosted by the involvement of former President Jimmy Carter, provides resources for qualified families who make a 1% down payment on their future home before spending a minimum of 500 hours helping volunteers construct it. A family pays for the home via low monthly mortgage payments.

“There’s always been a need for low-income housing,” said Bill Harvey, executive director of the San Gabriel Valley office of Habitat, located in Pasadena. “We have a lot of people who are out of work and can’t even find meager-wage jobs.”

Area churches and businesses have underwritten the Duarte project. Land has been donated by Los Angeles County.

Almost 60 families applied for the Duarte townhomes, which will cost $40,000 to $50,000, Harvey said. Up to 60 volunteers will work on the homes each day beginning in June, with completion scheduled for late summer.

Similar efforts will be undertaken in several other Los Angeles communities, including Pomona, Harvey said.

Carter is expected to visit the Duarte site in June during a weeklong stay in the region, Harvey said.