Dignity Health Joins San Bernardino Community to Celebrate Arrowhead Grove Neighborhood Revitalization Project

San Francisco, Calif. – September 21, 2018 – Dignity Health, one of the nation’s largest health systems—with 39 hospitals and over 400 care centers—joins community leaders and the city of San Bernardino to celebrate the success of the first two phases of the Arrowhead Grove Neighborhood Revitalization project and funding for the next phase.

The Arrowhead Grove Neighborhood Revitalization project addresses the long-standing need for affordable housing in San Bernardino, encourages job creation and economic development throughout the community, and establishes a safe environment for children and families. Dignity Health provided a $1.2 million bridge loan to help move the long-anticipated development forward.

Dignity Health’s loan to Arrowhead Grove is part of the organization’s Community Investment Program, which is designed to addresses the social determinants of health, such as housing, in underserved populations. The program deploys investable assets at below market-rate interest to organizations for community development. Last year, Dignity Health had approved 73 loans totaling $97 million, and forty-five percent is invested in affordable housing. Dignity Health has lent more than $245 million to over 165 nonprofit organizations since it began the community investments program in 1991.

“We are proud to be part of the transformation taking place in this community,” said Douglas Kleam, president, St. Bernardine Medical Center. “As a large employer and anchor in the community, we are working to bring stability to San Bernardino neighborhoods. We are grateful for collaborations like Arrowhead Grove, which share our common vision to strengthen neighborhoods that are struggling.”

Upon completion, the neighborhood revitalization project will include approximately 400 units of affordable and market-rate housing, community amenities, upgraded infrastructure and an educational village space designed to foster integrated learning for children in the community. 

“Community housing and the health of the people we serve are inseparable issues,” said June Collison, president, Community Hospital of San Bernardino. “People who live in homes they can afford are better able to support their families with healthy food and important preventive health services. In turn, this brings down the cost of care overall by reducing acute care and emergency room admissions.”

The project has been recognized by the National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials and the Affordable Housing Tax Credit Coalition for its demonstrated positive impact on the community. As traditional funding sources have become more scarce, this project represents a public-private partnership that is redefining how the state, cities, developers, and health institutions together can create affordable and workforce housing.

“As a hospital system, we have a responsibility to ensure our patients live in a community that serves their needs, because healthy communities are necessary for healthy people,” said Pablo Bravo, Dignity Health’s vice president of community health. “It’s more than simply putting a roof over someone’s head; it’s about giving people a sense of dignity and connection to their town and neighborhood. That’s why we support the Arrowhead Grove Neighborhood Revitalization Project and other initiatives across California that are working toward sustainable and healthy communities.” 

About Dignity Health

Dignity Health, one of the nation’s largest health care systems, is a multi-state network of 10,000 physicians, more than 60,000 employees, 40 acute care hospitals and 400-plus care-centers including neighborhood hospitals, urgent care, surgery and imaging centers, home health, and primary care clinics. Headquartered in San Francisco, Dignity Health is dedicated to providing compassionate, high-quality, and affordable patient-centered care with special attention to the poor and underserved.  In FY17, Dignity Health provided $2.6 billion in charitable care and services. For more information, please visit our website at www.dignityhealth.org.

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Contact:
Chad Burns
Dignity Health
[email protected]