SAN FRANCISCO, CA - The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco awarded $18.5 million in Affordable Housing Program (AHP) grants in the second round of its 2012 AHP funding competition. The grants were awarded through Bank members to 38 projects that will produce or preserve 2,018 units of housing affordable to lower-income individuals and families in Arizona, California, Georgia, Iowa, Nevada, New York, Pennsylvania, and Texas.
The AHP is a flexible source of gap funding for projects that create an affordable place to call home for low-income and moderate-income families and individuals. Grants awarded in 2012 Round B, ranging from $22,500 to $1 million per project, will support a wide range of targeted projects, including:
New construction of rental housing for low-income families, seniors, the formerly homeless, or individuals and households with special needs
Adaptive reuse of vacant schools, hotels, and medical facilities to create affordable apartments
Building of Habitat for Humanity homes
Sustainable developments that will be LEED Certified or GreenPoint Rated
Permanent supportive housing with services for veterans, including senior veterans, female veterans, and veterans with large families
“Once again, many of the homes and developments selected to receive AHP funds in this round will meet needs that can’t be satisfied by a roof alone. They will provide supportive services to troubled veterans, offer accessibility to seniors or people with disabilities, give working people housing options where the work is, allow families to get to know their future neighbors by building their own homes together, or help safeguard our natural resources by building with sustainable methods and materials,” said Jim Yacenda, Vice President and Community Investment Officer at FHLBank San Francisco. “The Bank recognizes that not just the 38 awarded projects here, but all 123 partnership-driven projects that applied for funds in the round, represent extremely thoughtful solutions to the familiar ‘who, what, and how’ challenges that efforts to create affordable housing regularly face.”
The communities that will benefit from AHP funds awarded in the 2012 Round B grant competition are:
Arizona: Avondale, Clarkdale, Cottonwood, Phoenix, Tucson
California: Anaheim, Bakersfield, Chico, Foster City, Greenfield, Hayward, Huron, Loma Linda, Los Angeles, Madera, Mecca, Modesto, Petaluma, Redding, San Jose, Scotts Valley, Simi Valley, Solvang, Sylmar, West Hollywood
Georgia: Ashburn
Iowa: Marshalltown
Nevada: Carson City, Las Vegas
New York: Jamaica (Queens)
Pennsylvania: Edinboro
Texas: Austin
Since 1990, with 10% of the Bank’s annual earnings set aside to support the program, the Bank has awarded more than $691 million in competitive AHP subsidies to produce 102,276 units of quality affordable housing targeted to low- and moderate-income households. AHP grants are awarded through a competitive application process. The Bank’s member financial institutions, working in partnership with community-based housing sponsors or developers, submit applications for specific projects and programs. The AHP provides funds to assist in the purchase, construction, or rehabilitation of affordable housing. Funded projects cover a wide range of strategies and solutions, from historic preservation and adaptive reuse to new construction and rehabilitation and resale of foreclosed homes. Where AHP projects are developed, local economies are also given a real boost, as these projects create jobs, increase construction and consumer spending, and generate new tax revenues.