Tiny homes for homeless housing could be coming to a second Sacramento lot. See where
A tiny home village of housing for homeless adults and families could be coming to another Sacramento vacant lot.
The Sacramento City Council Tuesday unanimously approved an application to the state for 120 tiny homes on a vacant lot at 4290 Mack Road, near Morrison Creek.
If the state approves the Project Homekey grant, the project would cost a total of up to $35 million, but would be less than $200,000 per door to build, a city staff report said. That’s less than the $600,000 it sometimes costs to build government-subsidized housing in Sacramento. The developer would be Sacramento-based Gateway Development Company and the tiny home manufacturer would be Boss Homes.
“To me this is a no brainer,” said Councilmember Caity Maple, who represents the area. “We are in crisis ... building this for less than $200,000 a door? That’s not really happening anywhere.”
Tenants would pay about 30% of their income toward rent, the city staff report said. That includes income from jobs, Social Security or Housing Choice vouchers, formerly called Section 8.
Bill Knowlton, executive director of the Mack Road Partnership, which represents area businesses, spoke in support of the project.
Tina Nguyen, owner of Pho Xe Lua restaurant on Stockton Boulevard, expressed concern about spending millions on the homeless instead of youth programs. Although there is new housing for the homeless built adjacent to her restaurant, there are still people camping outside it, she said.
“If we don’t see a return on that investment, we are throwing money at this,” Nguyen told the council. “We don’t have the luxury to spend that kind of money on homelessness at this time.”
Mayor Kevin McCarty, in response, said this project would be funded with state money and would cost far less per door than the new apartment complex along Stockton Boulevard that Nguyen referenced.
“We need to find way more cost effective places to build and develop and this is spot on,” McCarty said.
People in encampments along Mack Road would have first priority into the site, Maple said.
The project would include a dog park and 91 parking spaces, according to the staff report.
The 11-acre site is vacant, and people frequently camp in tents on it, said Councilmember Mai Vang, whose district is adjacent to the site.
The site is has been owned by a revocable trust controlled by Lee and Eleanor Moulton of Carmichael, since 1990, according to the Sacramento County Assessor’s Office.
Earlier this month, the council approved a similar tiny home housing site for homeless seniors in North Sacramento.
Vang called upon her colleagues who do not have homeless sites in their districts to take action.
“I’m hoping my colleagues who do not have a shelter or do not have a Homekey project will step up,” Vang said.
In response, Councilmember Rick Jennings said he would be “more aggressive” in looking for land for such a project in his district, which includes Land Park, Curtis Park, and Pocket/Greenhaven.
This story was originally published May 21, 2025 at 12:59 PM.
