Philanthropist, billionaire and author MacKenzie Scott has donated a second major gift in the form of two single-family residences in Beverly Hills valued at $55 million to the California Community Foundation. Ninety percent of the gift’s sale proceeds are earmarked to tackle the city’s affordable housing issue and will be directed towards the foundation’s affordable housing grant-making.
The remaining 10 percent of proceeds from the sale of the two houses will be allocated to the foundation’s immigration integration efforts. The foundation’s commitment to immigration integration involves working with local nonprofits to integrate immigrants into the social, civic and economic fabric of life in Los Angeles County.
The $55 million gift from Scott, the former wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, was announced Aug. 9 and follows her $20 million gift to the foundation last year that was called “transformative.” It allowed the foundation to establish the LA Arts Endowment Fund, which financially supports and strengthens diverse, small to midsized arts organizations vital to the city’s creative economy.
With Scott’s recent gift, her priority and focus are on addressing the affordable housing crisis in the city and she partnered with the foundation, which is one of the biggest affordable housing grant-makers locally.
The gift will permanently expand the foundation’s affordable housing grant-making and will further its affordable housing production goals as well. Since 2000, the foundation has granted more than $30 million to help procure affordable, secure, and stable housing, as well as job opportunities, for Angelenos.
The foundation’s president and chief executive, attorney Antonia Hernández, has led the foundation since 2004, and has transformed the foundation into a community leader and important partner for donors.
Hernández brings a multifold approach to addressing the city’s affordable housing issue, in which grant-making to nonprofit developers who build affordable housing is key. Her strategy also includes strong advocacy on behalf of tenants, affordable housing production and program-related investments to non-profits
In these endeavors, Hernández emphasizes the importance of knowledge of the community and donor engagement.
“If the community foundation is in fact a community foundation, the value-added is our knowledge of the community and our knowledge of the needs of that community,” Hernández said.
The foundation is an advocate for affordable housing and helped secure the passage of Proposition HHH, which mandates the addition of 10,000 affordable housing units in Los Angeles by 2026. Funds from the sale proceeds of Scott’s latest gift will go toward that goal.
Transformative Giving
Scott reportedly had a net worth of $37.6 billion as of November, making her the third-wealthiest woman in the United States. Since signing the Giving Pledge in May 2019, in which signatories pledge to donate most of their wealth, Scott has given away billions of dollars quickly and without much fanfare.
“We applaud and are grateful to MacKenzie Scott’s extraordinary philanthropic investment in Los Angeles,” Hernández said last week with the announcement of Scott’s gift. “Her singular commitment – here and across the country – to transformative philanthropy has already secured the long-term future of dozens of nonprofits.
“With the California Community Foundation, her generosity will support organizations struggling to solve some of the most intractable issues facing our community. We are grateful for her partnership,” Hernández said.
The foundation has described both gifts from Scott as “transformative,” meaning the impact is not only great but long-lasting.
“What makes donations or gifts transformative are the impact they will have in the community. In this instance, Ms. Scott’s gift will enable CCF to grow our reach in the community by being able to provide additional grants to nonprofits in L.A. County that are building affordable housing or are advocating on behalf of tenants. CCF invests in organizations involved in housing justice, affordable housing development, as well as policy advocates and financial intermediaries,” Hernández said. “This gift will enable to us to empower advocates in the affordable housing space by giving them a voice through our grantmaking efforts.”
