Developers received city approval to erect a 12-unit apartment building designed to offer affordable and low-income housing on a vacant lot near downtown.
Lincoln City Council members on Monday approved the rezoning of the 1-acre lot at 24th and Q streets and also deemed the project in line with the city's long-term plan.Â
Hepburn Properties wants to build its Hepburn Square development on the northeast corner of the intersection, including one- and two-bedroom apartments, said Urban Development Director Dan Marvin.
This building would add to the existing Antelope Village housing projects in the area that have also been geared toward affordable, mixed-income housing.Â
Hepburn Square would be built next to an existing apartment building with the same owner, and once complete, Hepburn would offer six low-income units — two reserved for people making no more than 60% of Lincoln's median income and four available to people approved for Lincoln Housing Authority Section 8 vouchers.
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The new 12-unit building would only offer 12 off-street parking spots — not the 20 city zoning rules call for — but Marvin said city officials were comfortable waiving that rule due to the proximity to public transportation and size of the apartments being offered. Â
The $1.5 million project would qualify for more than $190,000 in tax-increment funding from the city, and the council will vote to authorize TIF for the development next month.
"It's what we need to be doing," Councilwoman Tammy Ward, who represents the downtown area, said of the project.Â