FHLB Awards $10M in Funding for New England Affordable Housing Initiatives
Boston--The Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston has unveiled a variety of funding initiatives to promote affordable housing in Connecticut and Rhode Island.
By Dees Stribling, Contributing Editor
Boston–The Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston has unveiled a variety of funding initiatives to promote affordable housing in Connecticut and Rhode Island. All together, the awards, in the form of grants, loans and interest-rate subsidies through the bank’s Affordable Housing Program (AHP), total more than $10 million.
AHP funds are used to create or preserve affordable housing and help pay construction, acquisition or rehabilitation costs. Financial institutions that are members of the FHLB work with local developers to apply for AHP funding, which is awarded through a competitive scoring process.
In Connecticut, five developments will benefit from the FHLB’s recent round of funding. One of the larger awards is an $800,000 grant and subsidy, as well as a $3.3 million advance, to Victory Gardens in Newington, which will be 74 rental units built on the Veterans Affairs Medical center campus. Fifty percent of these units will be set aside for formerly homeless veterans, and residents will be offered substance-abuse counseling, employment training, and GED and ESL services. Webster Bank N.A. is providing construction financing and permanent debt through the AHP-subsidized advance, with other funding provided through Veterans Affairs Military Construction appropriations, the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development, and Low Income Housing Tax Credit equity.
An FHLB grant and subsidy of nearly $800,000, plus a $2.25 million advance, will help fund Woodcrest Elderly Housing Expansion, Phase II, in Somers, Conn. This new construction will be built on land donated by the town and targets low- and very low-income seniors. It will include managed health care and adult care services, as well as high-efficiency construction features to reduce maintenance and energy costs. Rockville Bank is providing permanent financing through the AHP-subsidized advance, and other funding comes from Low Income Housing Tax Credits, HUD, CDBG and HOME funds.
The other Connecticut initiatives include a $208,000 grant and subsidy, plus a $210,000 advance, to help develop the five-unit Stuart Farm Apartments in Kent; a $587,000 grant and subsidy, plus a $600,000 advance, to help develop the 16-unit Ferry Crossing in New London; and a $50,000 grant to help develop two for-sale units in New London.
In North Smithfield, R.I., the FHLB is awarding a $673,000 grant and subsidy, plus a $625,000 advance, to fund the acquisition and rehabilitation of the 38 townhouse-style apartment property Marshfield Commons. The rehabilitation will involve many energy-efficient components, and nearly 75 percent of the property will be preserved as open green space. Residents will be offered services such as employment training, afterschool programs, job placement and counseling. Bank of America will purchase Low Income Housing Tax Credits, and RBS Citizens National Association provides permanent financing through the AHP-subsidized advance. Other financing includes Rhode Island Housing permanent financing, North Smithfield CDBG and HOME funds, as well as grants from Housing Resources Rhode Island and Neighborworks America.
