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Page 18 — Multifamily Properties Quarterly — February 2022 www.crej.com Project Spotlight O n lots at the corner of South Pecos Street and West Alameda Avenue sits a shuttered building with a sign that reads “Best Car Buys.” Behind these parcels, another vacant lot, surrounded by a chain- link fence at 1373 W. Nevada Place, faces a row of residential homes. They’re not much to look at, but in real estate, where the mantra is location, location, location, the Denver Housing Authority saw potential for an affordable housing development for families. Based on geographic information system modeling data from its broker at NAI Shames Makovsky, this loca- tion scored high on key metrics: access to public transit, groceries and schools for children of all ages. In March 2020, using funds from the DHA Delivers for Denver (D3) Bond Program, of which $62 million sup- ports DHA’s direct development and $62.5 million buys land for support- ive housing, DHA bought these lots for $4 million. The D3 Bond issuance that made this acquisition possible is a ground-breaker. The largest single fundraiser in DHA’s history, the initiative raised more than $120 million in intergovernmental agree- ment bonds to support Denver’s affordable housing goals, backed by city property tax allocations. About half of the money will accelerate existing DHA projects, conflating 10 years of development into five years. The other half supports land purchases like those at Pecos and Alameda Avenue, establishing a supportive hous- ing pipeline of new projects for the city and county of Denver. “The bond allows DHA to continue providing afford- able housing while fast-tracking ongo- ing projects like our Sun Valley redevelopment,” said DHA Senior Development Manager Haley Jordahl. “It also advances a major city priority to establish a pipeline of supportive housing. When all the shovels are put away, Denver will have nearly 2,500 new affordable housing units, 600 of which will support people exiting homeless- ness. This includes 1,300 units by DHA and 1,200 from the permanent supportive housing land acquisition program.” Activating the lots as supportive housing on that corner in south- west Denver will require dozens of public, private and neighborhood partners, reams of paperwork and millions of dollars to come together like threads to repair a rent in the social fabric. For DHA to allocate these lots, it started with neighbor- hood meetings and discussions with its Supportive Housing Advi- sory Committee, a group comprised of five city, state and nonprofit enti- ties, which identified the city’s des- perate need for supportive family housing. Last November, following a competitive request for qualifica- tions process, DHA and the city and county of Denver awarded Warren Village a long-term ground lease to these parcels to build supportive housing for the city’s most vulner- able families. “This partnership is the result of a lot of innovation on the part of the city and county of Denver and DHA to reimagine funding mecha- nisms for affordable housing” said David Nisivoccia, executive director of Denver Housing Authority. “It’s unique, too, in that it aligns city goals with DHA’s mission – and the mission of Warren Village, which has been helping families succeed in Denver for almost 50 years.” In late 2024, after a lengthy pro- cess of fundraising, design, permit- ting and construction, these tired city lots will teem with families, social workers, educators, mental health workers and teachers at Warren Village 3, a new two-build- ing campus for this long-standing Denver nonprofit, which will offer housing and services to 74 single- parent families experiencing chron- ic housing instability or homeless- ness. The Women’s Bean Project, which purchased a portion of this property from DHA, will build a brand-new facility next door for its transitional employment program and serve as a potential training partner for Warren Village and a source of clients. “This isn’t just housing,” said War- ren Village CEO Ethan Hemming, indicating that the “village” element in Warren Village means partner- ships. “There will be a licensed early learning center for children, and for the adults, the focus will be on career advancement, training and stabilization.” Enter additional partners. Warren Village 3 will house single-parent families, most of which have expe- rienced homelessness, as well as partner organizations that will help Warren Village provide wraparound services designed to help both the children and adults interrupt the Warren Village: It takes a village to build a village Keo Frazier Director of communications and public affairs, Denver Housing Authority Please see Frazier, Page 31 A rendering of the Warren Village campus X cel Energy, the state’s largest utility and primary provider of electricity and natural gas in the metro Denver area, is work- ing to achieve its 100% carbon-free energy by 2050 goal. We know that a carbon-free future doesn’t happen overnight, but it will hap- pen with patience, determina- tion, innovation and participation across all customers. With this goal in mind, Xcel Energy is offer- ing no-cost energy assessments and other energy-saving equip- ment to qualifying multifamily properties. Signing up for a free energy assessment is simple. The first step is to complete an online participa- tion form. Taking this simple step can help identify actions you can take to lower an asset’s operating costs while improving resident sat- isfaction and retention. Each property may participate in one, two or all three of these offers: • No-charge energy assessment to identify energy-saving opportuni- ties at each property. We provide an on-site or virtual assessment of each property to identify rebate eligible opportunities for interior/ exterior LED lighting along with energy-saving HVAC, domestic hot water and other mechanical equip- ment. • Free installation of in-unit energy-saving measures including LED bulbs, showerheads and sink aerators. We offer several different screw-in LED lightbulbs along with high-efficiency showerheads and kitchen/bath aerators at no cost. • Free advising and rebate appli- cation support to guide multifamily properties and their trade partners through equipment qualification and help streamline the rebate sub- mittal process. (We only advise on the rebate process and will never make a recommendation that a property use a specific product or installation company, will not share trade secrets about your practices or pricing, and will stay out of your relationship with your trade part- ner.) There are many types of prop- erties that are eligible for a free energy assessment. These include multifamily properties with five or more units per building offered at market rate (i.e., not income quali- fied), serviced by Xcel Energy. If you have questions about the eligibility of your particular property, send us the address and we’ll confirm. CLEAResult implements the Multifamily Buildings program on behalf of Xcel Energy. Contact us to get started on your energy-saving journey. For more information, visit our website at co.my.xcelen- ergy.com/s/business/cost-savings/ multi-family-building. s Xcel offers complimentary energy saving assessments Nicholas Rollo Associate account manager, Multifamily Buildings Program, Xcel Energy nicholas.rollo@ clearesult.com Xcel Energy is offering an on-site or virtual assessment of each property to identify rebate eligible opportunities for interior/exterior LED lighting along with energy- saving HVAC, domestic hot water and other mechanical equipment. Xcel Energy is offering free energy assessments, free installation of in-unit energy- saving measures, and free advisory and rebate application support.