Alameda County Allocates $53M From Measure W to 10 Affordable Housing Projects

The funding will help deliver over 900 permanently affordable homes, including 346 units for unhoused individuals.

Published on Mar. 5, 2026

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Alameda County has allocated $53 million from a 2020 sales tax measure, Measure W, to 10 affordable housing projects across the county. The funds will help deliver more than 900 permanently affordable homes, including 346 units for unhoused individuals, in Oakland, Berkeley, Alameda, Livermore, and Newark.

Why it matters

The Measure W funds are critical at a time when federal and state housing funds are scarce, allowing these projects to qualify for additional state and federal financing. The investments aim to address the county's homelessness crisis, with Oakland being the epicenter due to historical issues of redlining, disinvestment, and displacement.

The details

The $53 million in Measure W funds were approved by the Alameda County Board of Supervisors and will be distributed across 10 affordable housing projects. The funding will help deliver over 900 permanently affordable homes, including 346 units for unhoused individuals. The projects are located in Oakland, Berkeley, Alameda, Livermore, and Newark.

  • In November 2020, Alameda County voters narrowly passed Measure W, a 0.5% sales tax for 10 years to fund homelessness-related services.
  • In April 2025, a judge ruled that the funds accrued over the previous five years would be made available to Alameda County as a general fund.
  • In July 2025, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors voted to allocate 80% of the Measure W funds to the county's homelessness response plan and 20% for other essential services.
  • On March 4, 2026, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors approved the allocation of $53 million from the Measure W fund to the 10 affordable housing projects.

The players

Alameda County Board of Supervisors

The governing body of Alameda County that approved the allocation of $53 million from the Measure W fund to the 10 affordable housing projects.

Measure W

A 0.5% sales tax measure passed by Alameda County voters in 2020 to fund homelessness-related services.

Alameda County Taxpayers Association

An organization that sued Alameda County over the legality of the Measure W tax, leading to a lengthy court battle that suspended the accrued funds.

Michelle Starratt

The housing director at the Alameda County Housing and Community Development department.

Barbara Lee

The mayor of Oakland, which constitutes 22% of Alameda County's population but is home to 54% of its unhoused population and 74% of its unhoused Black population.

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What they’re saying

“In just the last six months, we [the Board of Supervisors] have invested more than $146 million to boost prevention [of homelessness], expand shelters across the county, and create permanent, supportive housing. The awards that we approved yesterday ... are a great example of how we're making the most of each measure W dollar.”

— Nikki Fortunato Bas, Alameda County Supervisor (Patch.com)

“Each of these projects is now able to go after state and federal funding. Without the additional Measure W funding, they wouldn't have qualified. So now we can go leverage those dollars, bring them back into our county.”

— Michelle Starratt, Housing Director, Alameda County Housing and Community Development (Patch.com)

“We can't sweep this under the rug: Oakland is the epicenter of this crisis, and not by coincidence. It's a product of decades of redlining, disinvestment, and displacement. We have to address the underlying structural issues around homelessness.”

— Barbara Lee, Mayor of Oakland (Patch.com)

What’s next

Construction is expected to begin on all 10 affordable housing projects within the next 12 months, using the Measure W funds as leverage to secure additional state and federal financing.

The takeaway

The allocation of $53 million from Measure W to 10 affordable housing projects in Alameda County represents a significant investment in addressing the region's homelessness crisis. By leveraging these local funds to attract state and federal resources, the county aims to deliver over 900 permanently affordable homes, including hundreds of units for unhoused individuals, helping to tackle the underlying structural issues driving homelessness.