Casa Familiar’s La Semilla Community Resiliency Center, an innovative first-of-its-kind project dedicated to environmental justice in San Ysidro, a San Diego neighborhood at the US-Mexican border, held its groundbreaking at the end of July. The LeSar portfolio of firms supported La Semilla’s development by providing grant writing project management through the Greenlining the Block initiative, ultimately resulting in La Semilla being awarded an $8.4M Community Resilience Center award from the California Strategic Growth Council.
La Semilla Climate Resiliency Center
Photo Credit, this image and sidebar image: Casa Familiar
La Semilla will serve residents during climate and emergency events and provide programming and services year-round to empower residents to address air pollution, extreme heat, drought, energy use, and other climate and community risks. The Center is located within San Ysidro’s Cultural Corridor, a community-led transformation of an alleyway into a vibrant thoroughfare through safety measures, arts programming, and greening strategies. In emergencies, the Center will act as a community civic hub and Cool Zone. It will also include a community garden with a greenhouse, a micro-mobility garage, and electric vehicle charging stations.
La Semilla Climate Resiliency Development Project
From left: Dora Monterroza, Jin Zhang, Jess McCool (Resilient Community Associate Planners, Strategic Growth Council), Tiernan Seaver (Grant Writer, Casa Familiar), Jacqueline Woo (California Legislative Analysis Manager, Global Policy Leadership Academy), Goyo Ortiz (Community Development Choreographer, Casa Familiar), Anna Jane Jones (Senior Resilient Community Planner, Strategic Growth Council), Jessica Cervantes (Resilient Community Associate Planner, Strategic Growth Council), Amar Cid (Deputy Director, Strategic Growth Council), Georgette Gomez (Community Development and Strategy Officer, Casa Familiar)
La Semilla will serve residents during climate and emergency events and provide programming and services year-round to empower residents to address air pollution, extreme heat, drought, energy use, and other climate and community risks. The Center is located within San Ysidro’s Cultural Corridor, a community-led transformation of an alleyway into a vibrant thoroughfare through safety measures, arts programming, and greening strategies. In emergencies, the Center will act as a community civic hub and Cool Zone. It will also include a community garden with a greenhouse, a micro-mobility garage, and electric vehicle charging stations.
“The selection of La Semilla is a monumental opportunity for Casa Familiar and the San Ysidro community. This grant isn’t just about funding. It’s about igniting a transformation. Together, we are embarking on the creation of a groundbreaking, climate-resilient community center — one that will stand as a beacon of innovation and progress, the very first of its kind,” said Lisa Cuestas, President and CEO of Casa Familiar.
“La Semilla embodies the residents’ commitment to creating a sustainable and equitable future for the neighborhood; this visionary project uplifts decades of community resistance by developing a much-needed climate resilient center,” said Goyo Ortiz, Community Development Choreographer of Casa Familiar.
The LeSar portfolio of firms is honored to have contributed to Casa Familiar’s vision of La Semilla, and we look forward to facilitating more transformative projects in California and beyond. For more information on LeSar’s grant writing, capital mapping, and development services, please contact Jacqueline Woo, California Legislative Analysis Manager, at [email protected].
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