Title
Resolution to Direct City Staff to Conduct Community Engagement Around Development Options for Ashley/William and First/William Surface Parking Lots to Support Affordable Housing in the City
Memorandum
On April 1, 2019, Ann Arbor City Council adopted Resolution R-19-138 directing the City Administrator to collaborate with the Ann Arbor Housing Commission (AAHC) to provide coordinated analysis on the feasibility of city-owned properties as potential locations for affordable housing. This resolution incorporated previous resolutions R-19-110, R-19-111 and R-19-116.
Jennifer Hall, Executive Director of the Ann Arbor Housing Commission led the analysis along with support from a staff team and several contractors to determine the feasibility for 11 sites including review of land use and zoning, environmental conditions, financial resources, site -specific costs, and overall risk among other factors. The analysis, three potential portfolio scenarios, and next step recommendations were presented to City Council at the Nov.18, 2019 City Council meeting.
As part of the analysis, the Klines lot (Ashley/William surface lot) has great potential for development and will significantly impact the downtown. The Kline's lot D1 zoning, and affordable housing density bonus, would allow for 400-600+ housing units and other uses such as first floor retail or office space.
This site scores competitively for the largest source of funding for affordable housing, which is Low-Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC). However, tax credits have a funding cap on a per project basis. A developer can apply for 2 separate tax credit applications as 2 separate projects in order to maximize the value of LIHTC funding. Even 2 LIHTC projects is capped out well below what the density allows on this site. Applying for 2 LIHTC projects is complicated but not impossible. The analysis included a financially feasible project that included 125 tax credit units through 2 separate tax credit appli...
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