Oak Harbor nonprofit lauded for offering affordable housing

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, April 7, 2026

U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen visited New Leaf last week to learn more about its unique affordable housing initiative.

Since 2025, New Leaf, an Oak Harbor nonprofit that employs adults with disabilities, has been offering six of its employees affordable housing, and it hopes to expand those opportunities over the coming years.

Larsen has visited New Leaf on several occasions in the past, CEO and Executive Director Steve Jacobs said, to learn more about the nonprofit and hear about its needs. This time was no different.

The company learned that several employees were living in tents or vans while working at New Leaf, and others were living in housing with a range of issues — from black mold to water-damaged roofing and exposed wiring. The staff decided to be the difference that the employees needed to help working adults with disabilities remain independent, Jacobs explained during his presentation.

New Leaf administration bought and restored seven individual affordable housing units, located at 69 NW Atlanta Way in Oak Harbor. Among several renovations, the team replaced rotten floors in the bathroom, fixed improperly ventilated dryers and upgraded the windows and doors.

“We didn’t want to perpetuate the idea of the landlord special,” Vocational Services Specialist Brent Bowden said. “We know what it means to not have somewhere to go home to safe at night.”

Rent for the employees in New Leaf’s affordable housing is based on 30% of their income. Their rent ranges from $900 to $1,026, which saves them about $600 compared to a typical unit in Oak Harbor, Jacobs said. The reduced rent includes sewer, water, garbage and all HOA fares.

Jacobs joked that AI advised the decision to offer affordable homes was an ill-advised investment decision. The organization’s leaders, however, care about their employee’s stability more than the financial gain.

Rachel Johnson, who is living in one of New Leaf’s affordable housing units, said stable housing has given her peace of mind. At previous housing, she faced threats of eviction. She is happy to have her first washer and dryer. Human Resources Director Michelle Leach helped walk her through using the portal to pay rent and gave her useful budgeting tips.

“This is the first place that I can call home,” Johnson said in a New Leaf newsletter last summer. “I love having a balcony. I can sit out and enjoy the sky. And my cat even has her own room. I feel safer and more stable and so much happier.”

Like Johnson, Brent Bowden, a New Leaf employee who was in the Army and Navy before being medically retired, went into debt while trying to cover the expenses for his wife’s cancer treatments.

New Leaf’s housing was a blessing for the couple, he said in the newsletter.

“I was in despair and just trying to hold it together. That’s when New Leaf reached out to me and asked if I was interested in applying for housing,” he said. “When I found out I qualified I nearly cried with relief. I can’t say enough about how generous New Leaf has been. “

As part of the U.S. AbilityOne program, one of the nations biggest employers of people with disabilities, Jacobs asked Larsen to support the establishment of a 1% contracting goal for the program. Additionally, he requested that Larsen co-sponsor the bill for the SSI Savings Penalty Elimination Act. This would raise limitations on the amount of assets an individual may have while receiving benefits, which in turn allows people with disabilities to use their savings when they are met with emergencies, according to Jacob’s presentation.

Larsen is optimistic about New Leaf’s impact and intends to continue to make decisions that benefit the nonprofit.

“New Leaf as an AbilityOne program provides an important service here in Oak Harbor, especially to the operations at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island,” he said. “These kind of nonprofit programs under Ability One provide these services all over the country at a value to the taxpayer and it’s important that we keep, in Congress, supporting AbilityOne.”

It was a productive meeting, Jacobs concluded.

“I think it went extremely well. Rick Larsen has always been a champion of our program,” he said.