The California Community Foundation has received a gift in the form of two single-family homes in Beverly Hills, jointly valued at about $55 million, from author and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. It is the second gift to CCF from Scott, who in 2021 gave $20 million to establish the L.A. Arts Endowment Fund, which supports diverse, small to mid-sized arts organizations in Los Angeles. The discretionary gift of the two homes allocates 90 percent of sale proceeds to the Foundation’s affordable housing grant-making efforts. The remaining funds will be allocated by CCF to support its immigrant integration program to advance opportunities for the millions of immigrants from throughout the world who call Los Angeles County home, according to the CCF.
The cost of housing stands out as one of the most critical issues affecting the lives of Los Angeles residents. A priority for Scott, the primary focus of the $55 million will be to permanently endow grant-making efforts to benefit Angelenos in need of affordable housing, the organization said.
