St. Vrain Habitat secures $3.5M from MacKenzie Scott gift

LONGMONT — Habitat for Humanity of the St. Vrain Valley has received $3.5 million as an unrestricted grant for its work in Longmont, Dacono and Estes Park.

The gift was part of a $436 million donation from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott to Habitat for Humanity International and 83 other U.S. Habitat organizations.

“We feel incredibly blessed to receive this gift and are so encouraged by Ms. Scott’s faith in what we do,” David Emerson, executive director of St. Vrain Habitat, said in a prepared statement.

“This gift is an acknowledgement of the critical need for affordable homeownership in this community, the great work our supporters have done within the Habitat model locally, and the strong evidence that homeownership is transformational, not only to the individual homeowner but also the community in which they reside. This gift, in combination with the continued support of our stakeholders places us in a position to increase homeownership opportunities exponentially.”

According to the Longmont Housing Affordability Review, no entry-level housing options exist in Longmont, with 58% of renters in Boulder County spending more than 30% of their income on monthly rent, higher than the national average. The city of Longmont estimates that the city faces a shortage of 2,900 affordable-housing units.

“While much needs to be decided on how this transformational $3.5 million gift will

be utilized, high priority will be placed on land acquisition, engineering and

construction of the infrastructure for current properties, and ramping up Habitat’s

home construction and repair program,” Emerson said.

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