CREJ

Page 42 — Multifamily Properties Quarterly — May 2021 www.crej.com Affordable Housing F irst commissioned by the city of Lakewood in 1974, the Lakewood Housing Authority – now Metro West Housing Solutions – existed to provide public housing and disperse fed- eral funding in the form of Hous- ing Choice Vouchers to Lakewood residents unable to afford growing housing costs. Forty-seven years and one name change later, Metro West’s days of being “just” a hous- ing authority are long gone. Now recognized as one of the top developers in Colorado’s afford- able housing industry, Metro West changed its entire business model with the advent of low-income housing tax credits. At the begin- ning of the 21st century, Metro West’s board members looked to the future and made the wise deci- sion that relying on federal funding would not sustain the organization and chose to become developers. They hired a developer, mortgaged the one apartment community that Metro West owned outside of its public housing portfolio and used the money to begin what is now a 20-year track record of housing development. Willow Glen, a senior residence that opened in 2003, was its first tax credit property. Its legacy has trans- formed Metro West from a small housing authority to a thriving nonprofit developer and manager of beautiful, high-quality, afford- able apartment communities whose growing portfolio currently sits at 17 communities, with more devel- opments in the wings. A shining example of the LIHTC program and the public-private partnerships that bring high-quality affordable hous- ing to Lakewood is Fifty Eight Hundred, which opened in October 2018. The award- winning develop- ment was once the Martischang Office Building – the tall- est building in Lakewood, which sat mostly vacant since its 1981 con- struction. Metro West contributed to the transforma- tion of the local area through its adaptive reuse of the building into a thriving affordable community. The property features 152 one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments for those earning between 30% and 60% of the area median income, stun- ning mountain views from a rooftop deck, youth and adult education rooms, on-site management and resident services coordinator, and beautiful public art. This project would have been impossible without LIHTC and the public-private partnership between Metro West and KeyBank. Fund- ing for public housing and Hous- ing Choice Vouchers alone could never have allowed Metro West the opportunity to provide 152 units of affordable housing to Lakewood residents most in need of it. While Fifty Eight Hundred is a prominent testament to the suc- cess of LIHTC, it is far from Metro West’s only success. All 17 of the communities under management were built or rehabbed using either the 9% or 4% LIHTC program, com- pletely shifting and stabilizing the financial situation of an organiza- tion that once relied primarily on federal funding. “Low-income housing tax credit development has been a game changer for us,” said Brendalee Con- nors, Metro West Housing Solutions’ chief real estate officer. “When we were more reliant on federal fund- ing, it was impossible to plan for the future as funding amounts and procedures changed every few years as new Congress people, represen- tatives and presidents were elected in Washington. With LIHTC proper- ties allowing us to create much of our own funding, we have been able to stay financially viable through administration changes and, what’s more, that stability has allowed us to continue to dream up and devel- op more affordable housing com- munities in Lakewood. We opened our newest community earlier this year, are in construction at Lamar Station Crossing Phase II, and have plans for several other develop- ments in the works.” Not only have tax credits helped Metro West continue to develop more communities, the LIHTC pro- gram has helped develop better communities. While “public hous- ing” suffers from an intense stigma and stereotyping, Metro West’s buildings actively fight against that. Driving down the Alameda corridor, Fifty Eight Hundred is indiscernible Thriving with public-private partnerships & LIHTCs Sarah Smith Communications specialist, Metro West Housing Solutions T he Douglas County Hous- ing Partnership is a hous- ing authority, but our name contains “partnership,” not “authority,” because it is truly a partnership. The towns of Parker and Castle Rock and the cities of Lone Tree, Castle Pines and Douglas County are the partners. In 2003, when the partnership was formed, Douglas County’s population was about 175,000. Located south of Arapahoe County and north of El Paso County, Douglas County had more horses than people in 1980 with a population of 25,153. The growth from 1980 to 2003 was explosive and that explosive growth continues as the county fills in the Front Range urban corridor with a current population of 370,000. Douglas County has changed from being primarily a ranching commu- nity to an extension of the Denver metro area. Evolving from ranches to single-family subdivisions, there now are developments with even higher density. As families moved into the many new single-family subdivisions, retail developments have been added to serve those new rooftops. Then employees are needed to staff the newly built retail developments and schools, hospi- tals, medical offices and medical clinics follow. Children who grew up in Douglas County and left to attend college now want to return as they start in their entry-level jobs. Seniors may be aging in place or may be coming to live in Douglas County to be near their children and grandchil- dren who live in those single-family homes. All these people need places to live and may not want or be able to afford a single- family home that averages $468,700. In its early years, the DCHP focused primarily on down payment assistance and homebuyer educa- tion. There always was the desire to build rental properties but the seed dollars to become a developer were not there. Again, partnership came into the picture. DCHP has part- nered with several private sector developers to bring much-needed affordable rental housing to Douglas County through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit program. DCHP currently is involved in seven com- pleted and fully occupied LIHTC apartment properties, with three more under construction and two planned to start construction soon. Those projects are comprised of 1,308 units built and occupied, 383 under construction and 275 about to start construction. We have developed good relationships with Shea Properties, Dominium, Inland Group, Koebel & Co., Trammell Crow, Atlantic Development and Wishcamper Developers – all well- respected developers of affordable housing. Three of the properties are for seniors with the remainder housing the hardworking families who want to live near their jobs, where their children can attend good schools and can enjoy the many recreational opportunity the county offers. The DCHP members also combine their annual allocation of Private Activity Bond cap, which DCHP issues to support development of the LIHTC housing throughout the county. There was a time when housing authorities’ programs were only government funded. Today housing authorities are more entrepreneur- ial. Most offer a mix of programs that are funded by a variety of sources. DCHP provides down pay- ment assistance to help first-time homebuyers buy a home and start to build equity. The funding for this program comes from the state of Colorado Division of Housing, Doug- las County and private developers Housing authorities must become entrepreneurial Diane Leavesley Executive director, Douglas County Housing Partnership Fifty Eight Hundred opened in Lakewood in October 2018. The development was once the Martischang Office Building, which sat mostly vacant since its 1981 construction. Please see Smith, Page 45 Apex Meridian East, built by Shea Properties in partnership with Douglas County Housing Authority, is a workforce housing development featuring seven buildings that provides 156 apartments, rent-restricted to those making 60% or less of the area median income. Please see Leavesley, Page 45