(Washington, DC) – Today, Mayor Muriel Bowser joined District residents and developers for the groundbreaking of the Brightwood Portfolio, a plan to create and preserve 140 affordable apartments for families across three historic buildings in Ward 4’s Brightwood neighborhood.
“The Brightwood Portfolio plays a critical role in how we address affordable housing in the District,” said Mayor Bowser. “This development furthers my goal of increasing quality affordable housing opportunities for more residents and maintaining economic diversity throughout the District – all in an effort to build more pathways to the middle class.”
The $32 million project will fund one, two, and three-bedroom affordable apartments for families. In addition, the renovations at the Concord, Valencia, and Vizcaya Apartment buildings will include a new community room, computer room, and exercise room. Tenant services will be provided by the Latin American Youth Center and the Latino Economic Development Center and will include after-school tutoring, financial literacy courses, and health and wellness training.
Earlier this month, Mayor Bowser presented a balanced Fiscal Year 2016 Budget to the D.C. Council that included $100 million dedicated to the Housing Production Trust Fund.
Today, the Mayor was joined today by Brightwood Portfolio developers The Hampstead Companies and NixDevCo, LLC. To make the development possible, the Brightwood Tenants Association used the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA) to preserve the affordability of the apartments and avoid displacement from their homes.
“We are pleased to play a role in the provision of affordable housing in the District,” said Chris Foster of The Hampstead Companies. “The residents told us what they wanted and we are proud to be in a position to deliver what they asked for: long-term affordability, quality craftsmanship, and modern amenities.”
Together with the DC Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD), the DC Housing Finance Agency (DCHFA), Citibank, and R4 Capital, the partnership collaboratively executes the mission of the District of Columbia to create and preserve opportunities for affordable housing and economic development in the District.
Financing for the project include $14.3 million in tax-exempt bonds issued by DCHFA, an acquisition loan of $10.8 million issued by DHCD, $2.6 million in federal Historic Tax Credits, and $4.5 million in federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (Housing Credit) equity.
The Housing Credit is America’s main tool for creating and preserving affordable housing. Since it was signed into law in 1986, the Housing Credit has provided more than 12,000 affordable homes and supported nearly 14,000 jobs in the District alone. It has also brought $1.32 billion in income and $518 million in tax revenue to the local economy.
The development of the Brightwood Portfolio will utilize many community based enterprises (CBEs) and small businesses in the District, and is expected to be complete by March 2016.