Through the city's nonprofit Austin Housing Finance Corp., City Council action sent millions of loan dollars to 10 rental and four ownership housing developments that are in the works in the city. The projects, mainly located throughout Central and East Austin, would include more than 1,000 housing units in total with a variety of bedroom counts. Most would be for residents earning below the local median family income, or MFI.
“The amount of affordable housing that we’re building and will have online soon, it just so dwarfs what we were able to do in the past," Mayor Steve Adler said.
Developers, nonprofits and other groups working on the projects include Austin Habitat for Humanity, Austin Revitalization Authority, Capital A Housing, Family Eldercare, Foundation Communities and Guadalupe Neighborhood Development Corp.
Altogether, council's approved AHFC agenda included $46.89 million in loans from a combination of AHFC and city bond funds. Several of the projects have received city financial support in the past as they move toward construction.
Hundreds of units at a few of the developments will be geared toward permanent supportive housing for those exiting homelessness, such as the 100-unit Cady Lofts complex in the Hancock neighborhood and the 120-unit hotel conversion Balcones Terrace in Northwest Austin.
Other projects include the 126-home ownership project Persimmon in Southeast Austin and the 198-unit Libertad Austin apartment complex off US 183.
Council also pushed along planning for the 156-unit Norman Apartments in East Austin and approved a nearly $353,000 contract with Capital Impact Partners for the training of local affordable housing developers.
Outside of AHFC, a resolution from Adler passed on council's regular agenda also launched a stakeholder process in the community to "explore potential enhancements" to aspects of the city's affordable housing programming.
