Leadership Excellence
Toni Atkins
Throughout her career in public service, including as a member of the City Council and Housing Authority of the City of San Diego (2000 – 2008), California State Senate President pro Tempore Toni Atkins has demonstrated exceptional leadership in support of the creation of affordable housing and addressing homelessness.
Under her leadership as a member of the San Diego City Council, in 2002, the nation’s first Housing State of Emergency was enacted, due to the shortage of affordable housing in San Diego. At that time, the City Council also approved the creation of the Inclusionary Housing Ordinance to produce additional affordable housing.
This year, on April 19, 2019, the California Association of Housing Authorities presented her with the John Bohm Legislative Advocacy Award.
Previous recognitions include SDHC’s first “Housing Champion” Award in 2014, induction into the California Housing Consortium’s Housing Hall of Fame in 2013, and the Legislator of the Year Award from the Corporation for Supportive Housing of California in 2012.
Georgette Gómez
As a member of the City Council and Housing Authority of the City of San Diego since 2016, City Council President Georgette Gómez has continued to advocate for the creation and preservation of affordable housing opportunities.
In 2019, the Pacific Southwest Regional Council of the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (PSWRC-NAHRO) recognized her with the “In Appreciation Award,” for which SDHC nominated her.
This award recognized “an elected or appointed official who, in calendar year 2018, demonstrated excellence as an advocate of housing programs.”
As a Councilmember in 2018, she introduced Municipal Code amendments that added Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher rental assistance as a protected source of income. Landlords can no longer decline a tenant based only on the household receiving rental assistance. The full City Council adopted these amendments on July 31, 2018.
In 2017, she proposed a “Housing Action Plan” with seven major initiatives to “stimulate the development of new housing, preserve existing affordable housing, and improve the overall quality of life in the City.
Housing Authority of the City of San Diego
