Northeast Denver Housing Center plans to build 180 more units of affordable housing in Stapleton, and 22 of those units will be available to homeless veterans and people with disabilities.
It's unusual for affordable housing that isn't dedicated to serving the homeless to rent units for people at the lower range of the income scale.
In Moline@Stapleton, 12 units, including one three-bedroom unit, will be set aside for people earning 30 percent or less of area median income (that's $17,640 a year for an individual and $22,680 for a household of three), and another 10 units will be set aside for those earning up to 40 percent of area median income ($23,520 for an individual and $30,240 for a household of three).
Dominique Acevedo, deputy director of Northeast Denver Housing, said the project can support these more heavily subsidized units with housing vouchers set aside specifically for veterans and for people with disabilities. Northeast Denver Housing is also working with the Department of Veterans Affairs to make sure people who rent this housing have the necessary services and support to keep it.
"I want to give kudos to Northeast Denver Housing for finding a way to integrate homeless housing into non-supported affordable housing," Councilwoman At-large Robin Kniech said in a recent committee meeting on the project.
Denver City Council signed off this week on a $2.6 million low-interest-rate loan to help complete the financing for the $35.6 million project. Construction will start early in 2018, with people moving in spring of 2019.
The project will go in at 2820 N. Moline St., a little west of Peoria Street and a little east of the Bluff Lake Nature Center, and have walking access to the Fitzsimmons Station of the R Line.
The affordable housing covenant on the project will last for 40 years, longer than the 30 years that the Office of Economic Development typically requires to get public funds.
The development will include 69 one-bedroom units, 69 two-bedroom units and 42 three-bedroom units. There will be 18 units for people earning up to 50 percent AMI ($29,400 for an individual, $37,800 for a family of three) and 140 units for people earning up to 60 percent AMI ($35,280 for an individual, $60,480 for a family of three).
