CREJ - Multifamily Properties Quarterly - January 2015
Transit-oriented development is a topic that’s been covered, and maybe in some cases over covered, but as long as Denver continues to expand public transit, the TOD buzz remains relevant to real estate professionals. According to Brad Weinig, TOD program director at Enterprise Community Partners, in most urban areas, including Denver, transportation is the second highest household expense after housing. This realization helped lead to the creation of Denver’s TOD Fund in 2010, with the purpose of creating and preserving affordable housing along current and future transit corridors in Denver. Four years later, the fund is still attempting to resolve Denver’s lack of affordable housing in urban areas. “Housing and transportation are the two biggest expenses for individuals as well as families,” said Weinig. “So you really can’t address one without the other.” To create the fund, Enterprise Community Partners collaborated with the Urban Land Conservancy, Denver’s Office of Strategic Partnerships and Office of Economic Development, as well as many local and national foundations, banks and community development financial institutions. ULC also was an equity investor and designated sole borrower of the fund. ULC has proved the fund model with eight successful acquisitions along five rail corridors in Denver. Not only will these investments result in the development of more than 600 units of affordable housing, but also the developments include well over 100,000 square feet of commercial space and affordable nonprofit facilities as well as a new public library. With each development, ULC works not only to build new neighborhood assets, but also to create a sense of community with new economic development and job opportunities. “We work closely with the communities we invest in to determine the needs of the neighborhood and its residents,” said Debra Bustos, vice president of real estate with ULC. “Once we understand what these needs are, we focus on identifying development partners that prioritize these needs to construct something that the community is really excited about.” The Evans Station Lofts, Avondale Apartments at Mile High Vista and Park Hill Station are a few of the successful projects that exist because of the TOD Fund. The Evans Station Lofts is a five-story building located at Evans Avenue and Santa Fe Drive. The development includes 50 affordable units with 10-foot ceilings, glass-tile accents, a community room with laptop computers, free Wi-Fi, an exercise room, a rooftop barbecue area and a shared car for hourly rental. The building also has 10,000 sf of commercial space. The Avondale Apartments at Mile High Vista is a seven-story building containing 80 units, including one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments. Avondale is located near West Colfax Avenue and Federal Boulevard. The complex is a quarter-mile from two light-rail stations, Knox and Decatur Federal. Park Hill Station Apartments is currently under construction. There are 156 affordable apartments being constructed at the future Colorado Boulevard station on the East Rail commuter line. The East Rail line will connect Union Station to Denver International Airport and is scheduled to open in early 2016. TOD Fund goes regional The Denver region continues to undertake one of the nation’s largest public transit expansions, adding new light rail, commuter rail and bus rapid transit lines to complement the existing pubic transit system. This expansion brings opportunities for equitable TOD throughout the region, well beyond Denver city limits. At a recent press conference, Weinig, along with Denver Mayor Michael Hancock and many other partners, announced the expansion of the TOD fund beyond city limits. The Denver Regional TOD Fund is a $24 million resource that will be used throughout the seven-county metro area, and is now available to be used by any qualified borrower with plans for affordable housing preservation or development near transit. The fund ties directly into one of the seven-county metro area's growing concerns – lack of affordable rental apartment housing. According to ULC, Colorado needs to produce 100,000 units to reach the demand for affordable housing. The regional fund should help to alleviate some of that, but according to Bustos, there is a need at the state level for a permanent affordable housing resource that can truly support this gap. The current goal of the regional fund is to create and preserve 2,000 affordable homes throughout a 10-year window in the seven-county region. Christi Craine, operations and communications director at ULC, understands the impact that this can have on the state and the urgency with which it must work to accomplish its goals. “The build out of RTD’s FasTracks is creating a huge opportunity right now,” said Craine. “It’s important for ULC to pave the way in order for these projects to be possible.”