CLPHA Press Room

Mark Gillett, executive director of the Oklahoma City Housing Authoirty, recently sat down with The Oklahoman to give a brief video explainer about the HCV program and how chronic federal underfunding of the program presents challenges for OCHA and impacts local housing opportunities. Watch the video here.

From the San Diego Housing Commission's press release:

The latest phase in the transformation of the former site of the Sheriff’s Crime Lab into an intergenerational community on Mt. Etna Drive in Clairemont has been completed, with the grand opening celebrated today for two adjacent developments that provide 228 new affordable rental homes for families with lower incomes.

“Mt. Etna is part of a bigger story—one where every week, every ribbon that we cut, we are seeing real progress in our shared effort to ensure that all San Diegans have a place to call home,” Mayor Todd Gloria said at today’s grand opening.

Modica Family Apartments and Taormina Family Apartments were developed by Chelsea Investment Corporation (Chelsea) in collaboration with the City of San Diego, County of San Diego, San Diego Housing Commission (SDHC), and additional partners. Rents will remain affordable for 55 years for households with lower incomes.

“This is a big step toward reducing San Diego’s housing shortage by providing affordable, high-quality housing for all of our City residents,” said City Councilmember Dr. Jennifer Campbell, who represents Council District 2, including the new developments.

The developments were built at the former site of the Sheriff’s Crime Lab. The County of San Diego ground leased the land to Chelsea for 99 years and awarded funding from the County’s Innovative Housing Trust Fund to support the developments.

“Today, we are seeing the second and third properties open doors at this location, where land was offered by the County through its initiative to use excess County sites to develop affordable housing,” County Supervisor Monica Montgomery Steppe said. “This is also a first step toward many more projects to come.”

SDHC awarded a $3 million loan toward the Modica development, consisting of federal and local funds SDHC administers, including:

• $2.4 million from the federal HOME Investment Partnerships Program, which the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) awards to the City of San Diego; and
• $600,000 from the City of San Diego’s Affordable Housing Fund.

SDHC awarded eight rental housing vouchers to the Taormina development to help residents pay their rent. These vouchers are linked directly to the apartments at the development, so that when a resident moves on, the voucher will remain to help another family with low income.

“A stable, affordable place to call home is an essential foundation that families need to thrive at work, in school, with their health and in community connection. The Modica and Taormina developments will provide that foundation for decades to come for families with lower incomes,” SDHC President and CEO Lisa Jones said.

Financing for both properties includes recycled Multifamily Housing Revenue Bonds made possible through an innovative collaboration among SDHC, the City of San Diego and the California Housing Finance Agency. Bond recycling allows for the re-use of previously allocated bond capacity that is normally lost, and recycles Multifamily Housing Revenue Bonds, also known as private activity bonds, into a new project without the use of limited low-income housing tax credits. Private sources of funds, such as revenue from the developments, are used to repay the bonds. SDHC, the City of San Diego and the Housing Authority of the City of San Diego are not financially liable for the bonds.

“This is a great example of government and the private sector coming together to build affordable housing that’s needed by so many San Diego families,” said Ryan Lundergan, Chelsea’s Senior Development Manager. “Many of these families will now have a home in a supportive community they can be proud of. These two projects represent a significant milestone—a victory toward progress in providing affordable housing options that previously have been out of reach for so many San Diegans.”

A total of 58 units at the Modica and Taormina properties are set aside for residents with intellectual or developmental disabilities. Amenities at these units will include roll-in showers, grab bars, reversible shower seats, and vinyl corner guards, among other features. The San Diego Regional Center will provide services for the residents of these units in collaboration with Southern California Housing Collaborative.

“Our partnership with Chelsea and Southern California Housing Collaborative has created so many—I can’t tell you how many—units for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, where before the option was to live in congregate,” San Diego Regional Center Associate Executive Director Kate Kinnamont said. “Now some of them who choose to live in the community are being supported in units like this. It’s amazing. It’s life-changing for most of the individuals we support who will call one of these 58 units their home, their first home for the first time.”

In addition to Modica and Taormina, the Paul Downey Senior Residence opened in January at the Mt. Etna Drive site, providing 78 affordable housing units for seniors with low income. SDHC awarded a $3.95 million loan and eight rental housing vouchers to support the Paul Downey Senior Residence development.

Serving Seniors provides services for residents at all three developments, in collaboration with Southern California Housing Collaborative and the San Diego Regional Center.

A fourth development at the site, Terrasini Senior Apartments, is pending completion. It will consist of 94 additional affordable rental homes for seniors with low income.

From Next City:

Boston is racing to decarbonize its public housing by 2030. The latest tool it’s deploying to reach that goal? Window-straddling heat pumps.

Last week, the Boston Housing Authority announced that it’s piloting the electric technology at Hassan Apartments, a 50-year-old public housing community with 100 units for older people and adults with disabilities. The modular appliances, made by California-based startup Gradient, plug into a typical 120-volt wall outlet and will replace the apartments’ outdated, much less efficient electric-resistance system.

“We believe that low-income people and the families and individuals who live in our buildings deserve access to 21st-century technologies and home comforts, just like anyone else out there,” said Joel Wool, the agency’s deputy administrator for sustainability and capital transformation. ​“We’re also doing our part to reduce air pollution and combat climate change.”

The Boston Housing Authority has ordered about 100 window heat pumps for the project. Two other Massachusetts housing agencies are also piloting Gradient’s appliances, the company announced last week: the Chelsea Housing Authority, which is testing about 400 heat pumps, and the Lynn Housing Authority & Neighborhood Development, which is trying out roughly 200 heat pumps, about half of which are already installed.

Read Next City's article.

From Alaska Public Media:

An organization dedicated to housing Alaskans has purchased more than 600 acres of university land across the state for future residential projects.

Daniel Delfino, with the Alaska Housing Finance Corp., said housing is tight all around Alaska. The idea, he said, is to jump-start development in a way the organization and others hope to replicate in the future.

“You can think about it as money that the private sector or another person doesn't have to come up with,” he said. “That's what we're bringing to the table. It's going to make housing go up in communities that probably wouldn't otherwise see it.”

The organization used a combination of state and federal funds to buy the land from the University of Alaska. The $12.3 million purchase includes parcels in Anchorage, Fairbanks, Seward, Palmer and Wasilla, plus funding to develop land in Cordova.

The next step is to work with local governments and other organizations to figure out the best way to develop the land, said AHFC CEO Bryan Butcher. He said those projects could take many different forms including partnerships with local and tribal governments, regional housing authorities and the private sector. They could be funded through various mechanisms, such as municipal bonds, tax credits, loans, grants and anticipated rent.

Read Alaska Public Media's article. 

From the Housing Authority of Baltimore City's press release:

Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott joined the Housing Authority of Baltimore City (HABC) alongside its development partners, The Michaels Organization and Affordable Homes & Communities of Greater Baltimore (AHC), to break ground on the second phase of Keys Pointe, a $36 million affordable housing development in southeast Baltimore.

“Today’s groundbreaking proves what’s possible when the City and our partners work together toward a shared vision of affordable housing for all. This is a critical milestone for Keys Pointe, a project that embodies our commitment to making sure every Baltimore resident has access to a safe, stable, and affordable place to call home,” said Mayor Scott.

Other dignitaries who joined to celebrate the start of this latest phase of the multi-phased revitalization of the O’Donnell Heights public housing community included Maryland State Senate President William Ferguson, Baltimore City Council President Zeke Cohen, and Julia Glanz, Deputy Secretary of the Maryland Department of Housing and Community Development.

“HABC believes every Baltimore resident deserves access to high-quality, affordable housing in communities that uplift and empower them. Key's Pointe is a powerful example of what we can achieve through partnerships and perseverance. This next phase reflects our continued commitment to transforming O’Donnell Heights into a vibrant, inclusive neighborhood where residents have real opportunities to succeed,” said Janet Abrahams, President & CEO of HABC.

This newest community will offer 60 affordable apartments, with floorplans that range from one- to four-bedroom apartments, spread across nine, two-story, townhouse-style buildings. Residents will have access to Key’s Pointe shared amenities, including community spaces, an outdoor fitness circuit, and two playgrounds. This redevelopment is the start of phase two and ties into the overall four-phase master plan.

In addition to the apartment homes, this phase includes new public and private infrastructure, including three new public roads with on-street parking for residents and guests, as well as accessible sidewalks. In addition, an existing bus stop adjacent to the development will be upgraded with a new concrete island to enhance convenience and safety for riders.

“It has been our privilege to be the Housing Authority’s partner, whose vision for this critical redevelopment effort has been unwavering,” said Michaels Senior Vice President Jonathan Lubonski. “We are also grateful for the strong support of not only the city’s political leaders, but also many other local stakeholders, including the current and former residents of O’Donnell Heights.”

"We are thrilled to break ground on a new phase of Key's Pointe and bring much-needed new housing to Baltimore City and Maryland," said AHC's Vice President of Real Estate Development Mary Claire Davis. "This project reflects our long-standing commitment to O'Donnell Heights, and we're honored to work with our partners to create quality, affordable homes where families can build their futures and thrive."

Financing for Keys Pointe 2A included $13.5 million in private equity raised through the sale of federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits and $8.2 million from Freddie Mac as a first mortgage. Berkadia syndicated the tax credits, which were invested in by Truist. HABC provided $7.7 million Moving to Work funds, while Baltimore City provided $2.9 million in ARPA and $1 million in DHCD Affordable Housing Trust fund dollars. Maryland Community Development Administration issued tax-exempt bonds.

Additional members of the development team include Bozzuto Construction, which is serving as the General Contractor. Moseley Architects provided planning and architectural services and Morris Ritchie Associates provided civil engineering services.