Our Team

In response to the housing crisis for people with developmental disabilities, ARCA has formed a housing committee that reports to the ARCA Board of Directors. The committee works with Regional Centers to increase housing options for people with developmental disabilities who want to choose where they live and with whom they live with. Regional Centers are addressing housing needs by developing an array of housing options for people with developmental disabilities. To this end, Regional Centers are working directly with local housing NPOs whose mission is to develop housing opportunities for people with developmental disabilities. The Association of Regional Center Agencies (ARCA) has hired a housing consultant whose responsibilities include assisting regional centers to develop their housing nonprofit organizations (NPO) and housing capacity; provide technical assistance to regional centers regarding housing; and develop housing program and funding strategies.

The housing committee shall:

• Be responsible for advancing the development of quality, affordable housing options throughout the State of California
• Shall explore ways in which to find and develop housing resources
• Shall seek and share funding opportunities for future housing projects
• Shall identify and share resources and information
• Shall provide technical assistance to regional centers
• Shall recommend policies and legislation to ARCA supporting housing for persons with developmental disabilities

Housing Committee Members

• Mike Danneker, Chairperson

  Executive Director
  Westside Regional Center

• Bob Hamilton

  Executive Director
  North Bay Regional Center

• Santi Rogers

  Executive Director
  San Andreas Regional Center

• Omar Noorzad

  Executive Director
  Tri-Counties Regional Center

• Laura Larson

  Executive Director
  Far Northern Regional Center

• Carlos Flores

  Executive Director
  San Diego Regional Center

• Michael Statti

  ARCA
  Consumer Advisory Committee

• Dick Jacobs

  Executive Director
  Valley Mountain Regional Center

• Marsha Mitchell-Bray

  Community Relations/Government Affairs Manager
  South Central Los Angeles Regional Center

• Ann Struthers

  Regional Center
  East Bay

• Darin Lounds

  Housing Organization Advisory Committee Representative
  Housing Consortium of the East Bay

• Kris McCann

  Housing Organization Advisory Committee Representative
  Bay Area Housing Corporation

• Mike Clark

  Executive Director
  Kern Regional Center

• Bill Pickel

  Housing Organization Advisory Committee Representative
  West Bay Housing Corporation

ARCA staff

• Bob Baldo

  Executive Director, ARCA

• Rick Rollens

  Legislative Advisor, ARCA

• Lisa Jackson

  Housing Consultant, ARCA

It is the unique partnership between the Regional Center and the housing organization that enables the housing organizations to leverage Federal, State, local, and other funding to create housing that is affordable for people with developmental disabilities and cost-effective for Regional Centers. Housing organization’s expertise in accessing funding, as well as developing a range of housing options, is invaluable to Regional Centers. The benefits to supporting housing organizations means people have options of where to live, families have the security to know that there are long term solutions to future living arrangements, and the system is investing in the future by paying for housing once, ultimately saving on expensive start-up funding when service providers go out of business. The housing organizations around the State provide valued input to the housing committee on a range of topics.

NPO Advisory Committee Members

• Darin Lounds

  Chairperson Executive Director,
  Housing Consortium of the East Bay

• Patti Uplinger

  Executive Director
  Housing Now

• Nancy Bargmann

  Executive Director
  HOPE

• Mary Eble

  Executive Director
  North Bay Housing Coalition

• Sara Grignon

  Executive Director
  Housing Choices Coalition

• Valerie Jones

  Executive Director
  Access Homes

• Kris McCann

  Executive Director
  Bay Area Housing Corporation

• Steve von Rajcs

  Executive Director
  California Housing Foundation

• Marc Belfortti

  Executive Director
  Tri-Counties Housing Corporation

• Olivia Paterson

  Executive Director
  Home Ownership Made Easy (HOME)

• Joseph Singh

  Executive Director
  Community Housing Resources inc.

• Nathan Schmid

  Executive Director
  Southern California Housing Collaborative

• Bill Pickel

  Executive Director
  West Bay Housing Corporation

• Ron Cohen

  Executive Director
  United Cerebral Palsy of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties