In Broomfield, Colorado, New Development Breaks an Affordable Housing Drought

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In Broomfield, Colorado, New Development Breaks an Affordable Housing Drought

 

The consolidated city-county of Broomfield, Colorado, is one of the fastest-growing communities in the Denver metropolitan area; its population grew 33 percent to 72,697 between 2011 and 2021. At the same time, affordable family housing is scarce in Broomfield, and rents are becoming burdensome. A recent housing needs assessment prepared for the Broomfield Housing Alliance reported that median gross rent in the area had increased 75 percent between 2011 to 2021, and the share of renters who spend more than 30 percent of their household income on rent rose from 22 percent to 25 percent between 2016 and 2021. Most of Broomfield’s housing stock consists of single-family detached homes, and affordable multifamily development had been stalled for decades, leaving low-income families with few housing options. By 2018, Broomfield faced a shortage of 1,286 units for renters earning less than $20,000 per year.

When Academy Place opened in April 2022, it was Broomfield’s first low-income housing tax credit project that was not senior housing in more than 20 years. Academy Place provides 50 units of affordable family housing for Broomfield residents, including 4 refugee families from Afghanistan.

Affordable Housing and Services for Broomfield Residents

Academy Place’s 50 units include 8 one-bedroom, 27 two-bedroom, and 15 three-bedroom apartments. Five units are reserved for households earning up to 30 percent of the area median income (AMI), 11 are reserved for those earning up to 40 percent of AMI, 6 are reserved for those earning less than 50 percent of AMI, and 27 are reserved for those earning up to 60 percent of AMI. One unit is set aside for employee housing.

All units feature ENERGY STAR^®-rated appliances, including dishwashers, refrigerators with freezers, and in-unit washers and dryers. Each unit has an attached balcony or outdoor patio. The building’s amenities include a community room, a business center, exercise facilities, a picnic area, a playground, and a community garden as well as water-conserving fixtures and energy-efficient heating and cooling. “I think this project really does highlight our passion for affordable housing and putting quality into it,” said Valerie Steichen, project manager at Summit Housing Group, which also provides onsite property management services in Academy Place. The “kinds of investments that we put into our projects, the details, the beauty — they actually last longer. They cost us [less money in the long run] as a property management company, too.”

In addition to housing, residents benefit from a range of free support services that local nonprofit Broomfield Fellowship in Serving Humanity (FISH) provides, including health and wellness programs, financial literacy training, job skills workshops, and transportation services. Academy Place is also within 1 mile of a library, a community center, a workforce center, a park, several shopping centers, and several stops for a bus route that runs through central Broomfield.

Housing Refugee Families

Development of Academy Place began in 2019, when the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority awarded 9 percent low-income housing tax credits to Montana-based developer Summit Housing Group. At the time, the developers did not have a particular service goal in mind beyond providing much-needed affordable housing to Broomfield residents. However, Summit had formed a special limited partnership with Broomfield FISH and set aside five affordable apartments in Academy Place for FISH to fill with members of a special population.

Broomfield saw an influx of refugees from Afghanistan beginning in 2018, part of a larger trend in the state of Colorado; Afghanistan generated more immigrants to the state than any other country in 2020. In 2021, a group of volunteers formed the Broomfield Resettlement Task Force to support immigrant families seeking to settle in the community, but many of these families struggled to find affordable housing in the area. Broomfield FISH decided to use the set-aside supportive units in Academy Place to provide housing for four of the Afghan refugee families, who had arrived in the United States starting in late 2021. Some of the families had been looking for housing for 6 months to a year. The development helps to ensure housing security for these families, with financial assistance for deposits and rent coming from Broomfield FISH.

Financing

Academy Place cost approximately $17.6 million. Major funding sources included approximately $11.1 million in 9 percent low-income housing tax credit equity through Hunt Capital’s Tax Credit Fund 37, a $5.5 million permanent loan through Rocky Mountain Community Reinvestment Corporation, and $965,747 in deferred developer fees. The Broomfield Housing Division also assisted the project by facilitating a real estate tax exemption.

Housing Families for the Future

Academy Place was given a Novogradac Developments of Distinction Award in 2023 in the Family Housing category. Building on its experience with Academy Place, Summit Housing Group is working on a 40-unit affordable family housing project in Idaho. Summit has also applied for a project in the small town of Granby, Colorado, which would be the first project in this community to receive a low-income housing tax credit.

Academy Place, along with the supportive services provided by FISH, helps Broomfield meet its affordable housing goals. It represents the community’s efforts to address the needs of the existing population and welcome new residents.