Oak Harbor nonprofit showcases affordable housing pilot for employees

Steve Jacobs, executive director of New Leaf, led U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen last week through seven renovated apartments that the Oak Harbor nonprofit bought to house staff, a concrete example of employer-run affordable housing on Whidbey Island. The units, reported in local coverage as 69 NW Atlanta Way while public property listings use 690 NW Atalanta Way, were acquired and rehabilitated in a 2024–2025 timeline and have been prioritized for employees since 2025.

New Leaf purchased and restored seven individual units and has housed six employees in the pilot, setting rent at 30 percent of each resident’s income, with reported monthly rents ranging from $900 to $1,026. The rent policy yields an estimated savings of roughly $600 per month for those residents compared with a typical Oak Harbor unit, according to New Leaf materials and local reporting. Renovations addressed habitability problems identified during acquisition, including rotten bathroom floors, improperly ventilated dryers and upgraded windows and doors to meet safety standards.

The staffing and program context underscores capacity for the effort: New Leaf, founded in 1969 and operating under the federal AbilityOne program, lists roughly 170 to 180 employees and reported about $8.3 million in revenues and $14 million in assets for 2023. Vocational services specialist Brent Bowden and other New Leaf staff described encountering applicants and hires who were living in tents, vans or substandard rentals before the pilot prioritized housing for employees, making the seven units an immediate retention and recruitment measure for the nonprofit.

The pilot sits against a broader local shortage: Island County’s Point‑in‑Time 2024 breakdown shows 64 people on North Whidbey, 10 in Central Whidbey, 15 on South Whidbey and 9 on Camano, and county planners estimate roughly 245 people unhoused on any given night when standard multipliers are applied. HUD’s FY2025 two‑bedroom Fair Market Rent for Island County is roughly $1,600 per month, while local rental trackers in early 2026 place Oak Harbor median rents broadly between $1,200 and $2,000 depending on bedroom mix, reinforcing why New Leaf’s $900–$1,026 employee rents represent a significant monthly savings.

Rep. Rick Larsen, who has previously engaged on housing issues in the district, used the April 7 visit to review the pilot and discuss how federal programs and community project funding might support scaling employer‑linked housing models. New Leaf has said it wants to expand the approach to serve more employees but will need capital and partnerships to do so.

For Oak Harbor employers and Island County planners, New Leaf’s seven‑unit pilot offers a measurable case: six employees moved into stable, rehabbed homes that directly cut their housing costs and reduced immediate housing insecurity, while the organization and visiting federal officials consider whether similar employer‑sponsored projects can be scaled to address a wider local shortage.