WAYCROSS, GA - The Duke and Duchess of Windsor were once among its regular guests. But the Ware Hotel, a Spanish colonial revival along Elizabeth Street, hasn't registered any patrons for eight years. That may soon change. Kingsland developer Bill Gross and corporate investor Affordable Equity Partners of Missouri hope to rehabilitate the historic hotel into an affordable 35- or 36-unit apartment complex. Rents for the one- and two-bedroom apartments would range from $380 to $480 a month.
The rehab will happen if the project can qualify for the federal low-income housing tax credit program, Jim Markel of Affordable Equity Partners told Waycross leaders during a recent City Commission meeting. The program stimulates private investment into affordable housing projects by granting income tax credits when developers build rentals that serve low-income tenants. "This is an IRS-regulated program," Markel said. "It's not HUD Section 8 housing."
Tenants must be employed and undergo credit and criminal background checks for the project to remain eligible for the tax credits, Markel said. The partners manage the property for at least 15 years, during which time income tax credits are awarded as long as compliance is maintained. "It will be a good, safe place for folks to live and work downtown," Gross said.
Before settling on the project, Gross and Markel consulted with the Downtown Waycross Development Authority. Connie Oliver, executive director of the authority, said Waycross merchants would benefit from a Ware Hotel rehabilitation. "One of the pieces missing downtown right now is people living there," Oliver said. When homes, stores, post offices and churches are all within walking distance, merchants have both customers and an available workforce nearby, Oliver said. "It's a win-win situation for everyone," she said.
The Ware Hotel rehab fits in with other efforts to attract retail business downtown, Oliver said. One great strength of Waycross as a community is its large stock of historic buildings. Rehabilitations of the old Rail Depot, Railway Express and Phoenix Hotel prove old buildings can be restored to effective use. "The Ware Hotel project could be a catalyst for the whole area. It's a landmark on that side of town," Gross said of the city's tallest building, at seven stories.
Before it closed, the hotel had catered to the elderly and to CSX Transportation engineers, conductors and others who needed a place to stay until their next assigned train left Waycross, where the railroad has a huge rail hub. Its restaurant was highly regarded for its country cooking buffet and was a favorite Sunday dinner stop for many.
City Commissioner Marian Solomon-Gaines was happy to hear the project would serve tenants with jobs, and thereby not attract a crime element to the community. "It's been my personal experience that when people are willing to work for what they have in life, they tend to take care of it," she said. Markel, formerly a city planner, recommended that Waycross commissioners create a DCA-approved "opportunity zone" in the Ware Hotel vicinity.
The designation would increase the Ware Hotel's chances for enrollment in the low-income housing tax credit program. The program grants tax credits to businesses when they create jobs within the approved district. To qualify, the zone must be an underdeveloped area where 15 percent of residents live below the poverty level. The city also must create a redevelopment plan for the district. "This isn't to say the area is a bad neighborhood," City Manager Pete Pyrzenski said. "It's just an opportunity we can use to create this type of housing."
Source: jacksonville.com