The Sky Hope Recovery Center is a new construction, 68-unit Single Room Occupancy (SRO) special needs development located in Somerset, Kentucky. The developer, The Adanta Group, is a non-profit community service organization that provides behavioral health care services to individuals in the Lake Cumberland region of Kentucky. For this project, they received a special allocation of tax credits for its commitment to serve a tenant population with special needs through the Recovery Kentucky program. Sky Hope, which provides housing and on-site services to women recovering from substance abuse through mandatory participation in a recovery program, is the 14th and final Recovery Kentucky development. This joint program between the Department of Local Governments, Department of Corrections, and Kentucky Housing Corporation works with individuals seeking recovery from substance abuse addiction who are at risk of homelessness and are often coming out of incarceration and assists them in moving toward independent living. CAHEC’s $7 million in financing was used toward the development of the 68 Single Room Occupancy units.
435 LaGrave at Tapestry Square – Grand Rapids, Michigan
Cinnaire partnered with Inner City Christian Federation to bring about a key project in the revitalization of the Tapestry Square area in Grand Rapids, MI. Located near downtown Grand Rapids, 435 LaGrave is a LEED-Gold certified 3-story new apartment building with 24 apartment homes and ground floor retail space. Six units at 435 LaGrave serve as permanent housing for youth 18-21 that have aged out of foster care. On-site services provide residents access to resources on life skills, financial literacy, substance abuse, employment, parenting and leadership development are available. Courses on homeownership, financial management and Healthy Families are also offered. The modern complex features a community room with a vibrant gathering area and a kitchen. All units at 435 LaGrave include energy star rated water heaters and appliances, including washer and dryers.
435 LaGrave at Tapestry Square received multiple levels of funding including Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, MSHDA HOME funds, Grand Rapids HOME Funds, MSHDA Permanent Loan Financing, Michigan Housing and Community Development Fund support, funds from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago’s Affordable Housing Program with Cinnaire as the Member Bank, MSHDA project-based vouchers for Permanent Supportive Housing, and foundation grants for our commercial and retail space. The local community and the City of Grand Rapids showed tremendous support for the development. Grand Rapids’ local Continuum of Care, a consortium of service providers working to end homelessness, has endorsed and supported the property since its inception. This collaboration and support of all the partners made it possible to shift the paradigm of affordable housing existing autonomously and instead truly integrating income diversity and a high-needs population in a vibrant community.
Ainahau Vista II is an affordable rental building for Hawaii’s seniors, earning at or below 60% of Honolulu’s median income. The Project is located in Waikiki and is built on the site that was once the home of Princess Kaiulani, heir to the throne of Hawaii.
The Project consists of a single nine story building. There are 62 rental units consisting of 15 studios and 47 one-bedroom units. Sizes range from 377 sq. ft – 420 sq. ft. Monthly rental rates range from $549-$1,137 and will remain at affordable rental levels for 61 years.
Amenities include multi-purpose community room and guest parking.
Located in Hartford, Vermont, this beautiful new building provides 30 energy efficient, affordable family apartments in the designated growth center with easy access to services, public transit and job opportunities.
Housing Vermont’s energy services division helps us to optimize building systems, ensuring efficiency, while maintaining costs and increasing equipment longevity.
Intensive focus went into the design of Wentworth Community Housing and we made substantial investment in the thermal shell, solar PV on the roof and utilized an innovative approach to heating and cooling through an all-electric central ventilation system. The result is that during the month of August, when it was quite warm outside, the indoor temperature was a comfortable 72 degrees, and the electric bill for the entire building, after netting out the credits from the solar PV system, was a remarkable $289.69!
Housing credit equity provided $5.8 million of the $9.8 million total development costs. Other sources of funds included Vermont’s Housing for All Revenue Bond, the Vermont Housing and Conservation Board, Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development, Vermont Housing Finance Agency and Efficiency Vermont.
Housing Vermont and Twin Pines Housing have worked together to provide quality affordable homes to low and moderate income people in Hartford that strengthen the regional economy by helping workers afford housing in a high cost area.
In September 2019, a grand opening was held to celebrate the preservation and renovation of a historic building on High St. in Worcester that is home to Abby’s House, the largest provider of supportive housing for women in Worcester, Mass. The project was financed with equity from federal and state LIHTCs and federal and state historic tax credits. MHIC provided $6.7 million in federal low-income and historic tax credit financing as well as a $175,000 line of credit to fund a portion of the project’s operating reserve.
Abby’s House opened its doors in 1976 as one of the first overnight shelters for women in the U.S. Since then, the nonprofit has helped more than 13,000 women and their children get back on their feet. With a focus on case management, the nonprofit provides shelter, affordable housing, as well as advocacy and support services to homeless, abused, and low-income women and their children.
Over time, Abby’s House acquired three residential buildings and its flagship property at 52 High St., built in 1910, which houses 56 single room occupancy units, administrative offices, multipurpose program space, a commercial kitchen and a thrift store that is open to the public and which contributes to Abby’s House operating income.
The Abby’s House project included renovation and expansion of the SRO units, new kitchens and laundry facilities on each floor, new or upgraded systems, exterior and façade improvements, a new accessible entrance, a new commercial kitchen, an elevator, and window replacements among other critically needed improvements. The project transformed Abby’s house into a modern facility, equipped to help an even greater number of women who call Abby’s House home.
Parkview Senior and Family Apartment Homes is a 230 unit affordable housing community in San Jose, CA, one of the least affordable markets in the country. The property has a beautiful outdoor setting with an inner courtyard and Tot Lot and also includes a computer learning center, a community room with a library and piano, an exercise room and a television lounge.
MHEG is proud to have partnered with MGL Partners and Solvera Developers LLC on this historic landmark in downtown Denver.
Built in the 1930s, Tammen Hall was originally a dormitory for nurses who worked at the nearby Children’s Hospital. It was named after Harry Tammen, the first publisher of The Denver Post. The building was later converted into administrative offices for the hospital and then eventually became vacant once the offices relocated in 2007.
Today, the development provides 49 units for seniors 62+. The renovation complied with National Park Service standards and restored the historic entry and foyer, including molded ceilings, terrazzo floors, a carved fireplace, and a five-panel wall mural by Allen True that was original to the building. The property also offers an eighth-floor rooftop desk with views of the downtown skyline and mountains.
MHEG Fund 48, LP provided $10.2 million in equity.
In November of 2018, St. Johns United was awarded $8,022,000 in low-income housing tax credits (LIHTC) from the Montana Board of Housing to construct a new affordable housing project on its Billings campus, located at 3940 Rimrock Road. Known as Chapel Court Apartments, this new community will create 56 new affordable apartments to help broaden the scope of services provided to senior residents at St. John’s. In addition to the LIHTC allocation, critical funding was also provided through the Housing Trust Fund (HTF) administered by the Montana Department of Commerce.
Mountain Plains Equity Group has assumed a very active role in the development of this project, serving as both the tax credit equity partner, as well as the co-developer.
Although the design is a bit more complex than most, construction of the project is well underway. The finished building will actually be the result of limited building demolition, rehab of 8 units, all coupled with the new construction of 48 apartments in a 4-story tower. Relocation of current residents on the campus was completed in early 2019 and construction activities began in September of 2019. Expected completion date of the project is September of 2020.
The Motherhouse, developed by Developers Collaborative, is the first building in the multi-phase redevelopment of the Sisters of Mercy site located in Portland’s Deering Center Neighborhood. Originally built in 1906, The Motherhouse at 605 Stevens Avenue was home to the Sisters of Mercy until 2005 when it was closed due to a dwindling number of Sisters living at the nearly 116,000 square foot property located on 18.98 acres.
The 18M rehabilitation converted the convent’s numerous common spaces and small one room units into 88 apartments, including 66 tax credit units, for residents at 55 years of age and older. Each studio and one-bedroom apartment has a unique view and layout. This extensive rehabilitation was also able to restore and preserve the original grand stairways, stained glass windows, three story chapel with altar and grand organ while also adding two elevators, an onsite library, community room, two laundry rooms and sitting areas throughout. An onsite Resident Service Coordinator is available three days a week to help link tenants with services and coordinate onsite health and wellness programs.
NNEHIF’s 481 Maine and New Hampshire Housing Fund III provided $5.9M in LIHTC equity to this project. Additional financing in the form of hard and soft debt from Maine Housing, Historic tax credits, and the City of Portland rounded out the funding for Motherhouse.
Sheakley Center for Youth, Homeless Youth Housing Program – Cincinnati, Ohio
The Sheakley Center for Youth is the adaptive reuse of an existing warehouse into 39 units of permanent supportive housing in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Sheakley Center for Youth, developed by Model Property Development, Inc., and New Life Properties, Inc./Lighthouse Youth Services, employs a Housing First model to target homeless transition aged youth aged 18-24 who are living on the streets or in emergency shelter. The anticipated length of tenancy is 18 months, however no one will be evicted due to age. The goal is to transition the residents into more independent housing and life opportunities.
The Sheakley Center, managed by POAH Communities, is designed to create a single site where youth can enter from the streets for immediate stabilization through street outreach and resource center services, a safe and structured emergency shelter, and permanent housing. The building also houses Lighthouse Youth Services programming, services and administrative offices. Since 1969, Lighthouse Youth Services has developed a continuum of shelter, services and aftercare designed to provide skills to encourage responsibility and independence.
Sheakley Center for Youth was developed using Low Income Housing Tax Credits and an HDL Loan administered through the Ohio Housing Finance Agency. Funding sources include City of Cincinnati HOME funds, KeyBank financing, and Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati funding. An equity investment of $6.3 million was provided by Ohio Capital Corporation for Housing.
Windridge Estates represents a joint venture between St. Louis Equity Fund, Gardner Capital Affordable Housing, LLC and Hart Development Group, LLC. This 40-unit development is located in Bonner Springs, Kansas and consists of two- and three-bedroom apartment units. Twenty-four units are restricted to households earning 50% AMI or less and the remaining 16 units are restricted to households earning 60% AMI or less. Construction was completed and the development was fully leased in August, 2019. In an effort to continue development efforts in this area, the St. Louis Equity Fund has partnered a second time with this development team on Windridge Estates II, a second phase to Windridge Estates, which will consist of an additional 32 units.
Whittaker Place Apartments – Newport News, Virginia
The Whittaker Memorial Hospital building for the first time in over 20 years is again serving the Brookville Heights community in Newport News, Virginia. This adaptive reuse and historic rehabilitation provides 67 homes for families living below 50-60% of the median income of the city. Each apartment features keyless entry, an in-unit washer and dryer and granite countertops. Amenities also include a community room, picnic and grilling area and a dog park. Given the building’s history each unit is unique, and historic features were preserved including the large corridors, high ceilings, and ceramic wall tiles in the original labor and delivery rooms.
Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, it is one of the few historic hospitals in the United States built and designed by African American architects and physicians. Initially constructed in 1943 the hospital was a beacon of pride for the community in an era of Jim Crow and segregation. After the hospital relocated to a larger facility in 1985, the building fell into disrepair. Following decades of blight, the development of the Whittaker Place Apartments restores the building as a community asset to once again serve the needs of the neighborhood and residents. VCDC is proud to be part of the diverse team working together to preserve the building and history of the Whittaker Memorial Hospital as it pursues its new purpose of providing quality, affordable homes.
VCDC’s Housing Equity Fund of Virginia XXII invested over $6 million in Low Income Housing Tax Credits and Federal Historic Tax Credits to provide funding for this project. An additional $2.3 million was provided by State Historic Rehabilitation Credit investment. Whittaker Place is VCDC’s 14th LIHTC partnership in Newport News and its 33rd in the greater Hampton Roads area.
