FAYETTEVILLE, AR - The Fayetteville Public Housing Authority executed a step Monday to build the region's first solar-powered housing project to serve the city's lowest-income seniors. Members voted to apply for a $262,000 grant from a federal Affordable Housing Program, which would fund solar heat and power for 24 assisted-living units to be built adjacent to the existing Morgan Manor family units on East 12th Street. The $1.6 million project would generate an operating income of up to $100,000 per year, R.J. Stidham, a consultant, said.
The housing authority has a waiting list of about 300 people seeking Section 8 rental assistance, according to data provided at the meeting Monday. The 540-square-foot units would rent for $498 or less per month but never for more than 30 percent of a resident's income, Stidham said.
The authority has other potential funding sources through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development:
HOME Investment Partnerships Program
Section 202 Capital Advance program
Public Housing Capital Fund
The Arkansas Development Finance Authority could also be a funding source, but none provide for the solar technology that the Affordable Housing Program grant does. Housing with solar technology is typically reserved for those with higher incomes, Stidham said.
The application will be made via Metropolitan National Bank to the Federal Home Loan Bank of Dallas. Authority members Lib Horn, Hugh Earnest and Leon Jones Jr. each supported the application.
"A year ago we made a conscious commitment to aggressively add units," Earnest said. "What's really exciting here is that we can use the net income for other projects."
In other business, the authority heard that the Uni- versity of Arkansas' Community Design Center is interested in giving consulting advice toward developing 7.6 acres between 15th Street and Huntsville Road, which a subgroup of the authority plans to purchase.
The Partners for Better Housing nonprofit organization needs $250,000 for the land. About $150,000 is available, and the remaining $100,000 can be borrowed using existing certificates of deposit as collateral, Earnest said.
A survey and environmental assessment are needed. The property would be used to build single- and multifamily units for those with low or medium-low incomes.
Earnest said the city of Fayetteville recently was granted $172,000 through the federal stimulus package, which could be used for engineering and design work, so the group intends to seek support from the City Council.
"As long as it adds to the job base, that money could be used for engineering and design work," he said. The housing authority now offers 252 units in four locations.
Source: NWAnews.com