Moonridge Village

The first 80 unit phase of this 160 house affordable farm worker village is completed on a rural 42 acre site near the Pacific Ocean just south of Half Moon Bay. The two, three and four bedroom units rent to agricultural worker families from $200 to $500 per month, according to unit size and residents’ income. Common amenities include a soccer field, basketball court, tot-lots, community gardens and orchards, and a picnic-barbecue area.

Community facilities, including a computer learning center, community classrooms, laundry facilities, child development center, post office, and the management and maintenance offices are all arranged around a zocalo, or central plaza.

This affordable farm labor housing development had its beginnings in 1983. The project was first delayed due to a lack of water. When this issue finally resolved available sewer capacity had disappeared. A proposal for an on site sewage treatment plant gained government approval only to be stopped by Sierra Club and sewage district legal opposition. Then the local school district sued, demanding a $20 per square foot fee. The project has slowly tread a long and bumpy path, unable to start construction until fourteen years after conception.