On Monday, Aug. 17, the Rotary Club of Davis hosted Bill Pride, executive director of Yolo Community Builders and former director of Davis Community Meals and Housing and Paul’s Place. Pride has devoted decades to helping unhoused people in Yolo County find a place to call home.
Building on the success of Paul’s Place, Pride presented Yolo Community Builders’ plans for expanding affordable housing options for people who remain unhoused in Yolo County. Architect Maria Ogrydziak has contributed to the effort since 2017. As of January 2026, 942 people in Yolo County were unhoused.
Yolo Community Builders plans to construct permanent supportive housing. For each project, the organization would partner with a nonprofit with experience working with the unhoused that would manage and operate the housing and ultimately own the property.
The organization estimates it can build units for approximately $200,000 each, compared with a more typical cost of $500,000 per unit. Plans call for three-story buildings containing 15 to 35 units on sites of about one-third acre. The approximately 325-square-foot micro-dwellings would include shared gathering spaces on each floor and on-site supportive services.
All units would be designated for people with extremely low incomes, providing residents with a safe, stable place to live.
Ogrydziak said she was inspired to act after learning that people in Davis were living in tents. Paul’s Place demonstrates that thoughtful, healthful housing can support people experiencing homelessness while benefiting the broader community and giving residents the dignity of attractive, permanent homes.
Housing for the Unhoused
