Hundreds of women volunteers are wielding hammers and sawing wood in Logan Heights this week, in a $3 million project to help relieve San Diego’s affordable housing shortage.
“There’s huge demand (for affordable housing) in San Diego County. The median price of a home is over $550,000. Hardly anyone can afford that,” said Nicole Winfield, owner of Onyx Building Group.
She and her team are some of the 200 volunteers who will help to build eleven homes as part of Habitat For Humanity’s National Women Build Week. Each volunteer also raised at least $300 for the project.
Winfield used to be a teacher. She said she founded the company after getting a pink slip seven years ago.
“So I build schools. I might not teach in them, but I build them,” Winfield said.
Women Build projects are taking place across the country. On its website, Habitat For Humanity says women and children are the most likely to be affected by poor living conditions. The organization says this project serves as a way to empower women to take proactive steps towards a solution.
“It’s fantastic just to see a build from the plans to fruition. It’s incredible. It’s probably the most rewarding thing, and then to drive by it later and say, ‘We did that; my team did that,’” Winfield said.
Construction is expected to be finished on Friday.
