Washington Park & Mount Vernon Park among 1st to benefit
LANSING, MI – To invest in much needed capital improvements, the Lansing Housing Commission today announced plans to use Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) for improvements at two of its city properties.
The use of credits to access capital is made possible through the newly created Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.“It is incumbent upon us to have a plan to provide low-income Lansing area residents with safe, affordable housing now and in the future,” said Doug Fleming, executive director of the Lansing Housing Commission. “Going through RAD conversion provides us with an opportunity for significant upfront investment in our properties and establishes reserve requirements for future capital needs and operational success.”
The Lansing Housing Commission selected South Washington Park and Mount Vernon Park as the first two sites for the tax credits. South Washington Park won approval for a 9% LIHTC award in late December. Financial closing will take place over the next six to eight months with construction slated for this fall.
South Washington Park, located at 3200 S. Washington Ave., is made up of 187 one- and two-bedroom units. Investing an estimated $15 million, improvements will include new roofs, brick repair, flooring, windows, kitchens, cabinets, bathtubs, HVAC units, appliances parking lot repaving and more.
In addition, a successful 4% LIHTC award was received for Mount Vernon Park located at 3338 N. Waverly Road in late January and will provide $13 million of construction to begin this fall at its 140 units. Improvements will be very similar to those at South Washington Park and include the addition of air conditioning and more security cameras.
“This award will bring much needed investment into neighborhoods within the city of Lansing,” said Ryan Robinson, chair of the Lansing Housing Commission Board. “In partnership with the Mayor's Office and the City Council, we hope that this serves as one of many announcements speaking to the positive change that is happening in our city and at the Lansing Housing Commission.”
The Lansing Housing Commission will continue investment in its affordable housing properties by submitting application for tax credits to improve Hildebrandt Park and LaRoy Froh later this year.
For more information, visit lanshc.org or call 517-487-6550.
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The Lansing Housing Commission (LHC) is a public housing agency with a mission to compassionately deliver healthy, affordable, safe, quality housing options without discrimination with exceptional customer service while meeting high performance standards. LHC provides rental housing units and rental assistance through 830 units throughout the city and more than 1,600 housing choice vouchers in Lansing and surrounding communities.
