Potrero
Resident Programs
The programs we offer are as diverse as our residents – and tailored to their priorities.
We seek input from residents at each BRIDGE community and analyze household data to determine which programs will provide the most effective tools for healthy, successful lives. We work with dynamic nonprofit partners to deliver life-enhancing results for BRIDGE residents of all ages.
Susan J. Neufeld Paul
SVP, EVALUATION & RESIDENT PROGRAM DESIGN, COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT & RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
BRIDGE Insights:
Perspectives from our Leadership Team
In the real estate industry, developers like to talk about their buildings. I like to remind them about the people who live in those buildings. At BRIDGE, our resident programs and community development efforts focus on creating vibrant communities that enhance the lives of our residents and the surrounding neighborhood.
We follow our residents’ lead on which programs will have the greatest impact and work with nonprofit groups to help provide the necessary resources, for everything from basic needs like coordinating access to healthy food to preparing a resume for a job application. It’s so gratifying to see our educational support programs improve school performance and enable college attendance for the first time in some families.
Helping residents, particularly parents and future parents, gain economic stability is the key to creating opportunities for the next generation and breaking the cycle of poverty. We approach our work not only with deliberate, data-driven strategies, but also with compassion and respect for our residents’ long-term success.
Buildings are great. But at BRIDGE, flourishing communities are even better.
Residential Programs by the Numbers
programs
program hours
non-profit partners
Children
Early education, after-school, and summer enrichment programs boost academic performance and the likelihood of graduation, post-secondary studies, and better career prospects.
CASE Study
All-Star Academics
All-Star Academics partners with BRIDGE to provide on-site after school and summer enrichment activities throughout California. Their program consists of homework help as well as disguised learning activities to grow students’ confidence and skills in public speaking, science, reading, and math. Activities include theater, puppet shows, Lego robotics, and “Crime Scene Investigators,” where youth collect data and use reasoning and science to solve a hypothetical crime. Learning and collaborating in a safe, supportive environment has helped students improve their grades and lower their anxiety. In 2023, All-Star Academics served over 400 students at 25 BRIDGE properties.
Financial Empowerment
BRIDGE works with residents on strategies for breaking the cycle of poverty and helping advance opportunities for the next generation.
CASE Study
Esusu
BRIDGE partners with Esusu, a BIPOC-owned financial technology company, to bring residents a wide array of financial programs designed to help them establish and improve their credit rating. Esusu helps some residents establish credit visibility for the first time and helps others improve their overall credit ratings and scores by reporting on-time rent payments to the three credit bureaus. By doing so, many residents are able to build a financial foundation to eventually have the choice to move into market-rate apartment homes or achieve home ownership. The free program is implemented across 100+ BRIDGE-managed communities throughout CA, with over 10,000 households having their positive rent payments reported.
Youth and Families
Personal relationships foster effective counseling services, while ESL and job support programs impart skills that help residents increase family stability and advance their goals.
CASE Study
Lincoln Families
Since 1883, Lincoln Families has provided preventative, responsive, and intensive support programs focused on school achievement, economic mobility, and community wellness to improve outcomes for children and families in the Bay Area. Lincoln Families’ Mandela Family Resource Center, located in BRIDGE’s Mandela Gateway Property, offers BRIDGE residents and neighbors with a wide range of programs, including family literacy activities, parent workshops and career exploration, and health and wellness workshops. The program also features a community action program designed to help families advocate on issues affecting West Oakland, including employment, neighborhood safety, and housing/tenant rights.
CASE Study
Southwest Youth and Family Services
Southwest Youth & Family Services (SWYFS) provides children and families with integrated, individualized programs and support ranging from behavioral health and education programs to family advocacy and youth development. SWYFS’ New Futures Program serves BRIDGE residents at Coronado Springs in Seattle by providing academic support, tutoring, enrichment activities such as arts education and STEM based learning, outdoor recreation, youth development programs, and family advocacy support including translations, transportation, parenting skills, and financial literacy.
Seniors
Service coordination connects seniors to vital resources – and each other – to promote healthy, independent, and socially active aging.
CASE Study
Sequoia Living
Sequoia Living is a Bay Area nonprofit that offers older adults from all economic backgrounds supportive and enriching programs focused on physical, social, health, and spiritual care. Sequoia Living teams up with BRIDGE at five Bay Area properties to provide residents with on-site programs, crisis management and fraud prevention workshops, housing sustainability support, and educational, social, and health related activities, including Zumba Gold, vaccination clinics, and intergenerational programs where seniors and local youth can connect.
