Urban Land Conservancy Acquires Villas at Wadsworth Station

By Gabriel Circiog, Associate Editor

The Urban Land Conservancy recently announced the acquisition of The Villas at Wadsworth Station—a 100-unit rental property in Lakewood, Colo. Located at 1330-1337 Yukon St. near the Wadsworth Light Rail Station, the property was purchased with the support of a $5.6 million loan from Citywide Banks and a $1.3 million low-interest loan from the Colorado Housing Investment Fund. The latter is the first loan made by the $13.2 million CHIF, funded through the $51.75 million mortgage servicing and foreclosure processing settlement recovered earlier this year by the state’s Attorney General.

Chris Cerveny, senior vice president of Citywide Banks, said in a statement: “As a locally owned bank, Citywide Banks is proud to support Urban Land Conservancy’s ongoing efforts to preserve real estate in our community.”

Through the acquisition, the Urban Land Conservancy aims to preserve workforce housing near public transportation. The housing preservation of The Villas represents the organization’s largest real estate transaction and first acquisition in Lakewood. The organization is partnering with Rocky Mountain Communities and Colorado Resources & Housing Development Corporation in the management and eventual transfer of property ownership.

The Villas include a community facility and two apartment buildings constructed in 1971. The Urban Land Conservancy paid $7 million for the property to G&S Investors LaSalle LLC. The Villas features one- and two-bedroom apartments and will be managed by Rocky Mountain Communities, which will partner with CRHDC to secure financing to acquire the property from the Urban Land Conservancy sometime between 2014 and 2015.

“It is critical to preserve quality workforce housing at transit sites during the build out of FasTracks, providing residents with access to transit, increased opportunity for jobs and additional income for an improved quality of life,” said Aaron Miripol, president and CEO of ULC. “ULC is proud to partner with Citywide Banks, the State Division of Housing, and two regional housing nonprofits who share our vision of providing these opportunities for the long term.”

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Photo Courtesy of: www.villalasalleapartments.com