51����Ƶ

Tom Tomaszewski, president of the Annex Group, was on hand Thursday for a ribbon-cutting at the $35 million Union at Middle Creek affordable housing project, the first foray into Lincoln by the Indiana-based group.

“When the city of Lincoln several years ago went out and proclaimed that they needed 5,000 units of affordable housing, we knew that this was a place that we needed to be,” he said. “This represents the first investment from the Annex Group in Lincoln, but it won’t be the last.”

Tomaszewski was referring to Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird’s Affordable Housing Coordinated Action Plan created in 2020, which included a goal of creating 5,000 new affordable housing units by 2030.

Gaylor Baird said the city is ahead of schedule to meet that goal, having incentivized the creation of 2,670 units so far.

“Increasing the supply for affordable housing is a top priority for our community and my administration and the City Council ... because we know how essential it is to family and individual well-being to our economy, to our business and our workforce and to building an equitable and inclusive city,” she said.

The Annex Group, which has projects in 18 states mostly across the Midwest, has another affordable housing project under construction in Lincoln: Union at Antelope Valley, a $50.8 million, 187-unit apartment complex on the block bounded by Antelope Valley Parkway and 18th, K and L streets. It also has a project in the planning stages, Central at South Haymarket, a $41.7 million, 175-unit apartment complex at 205 S. 10th St.

Tomaszewski said Lincoln’s progress on its affordable housing goals is happening because city officials and others are so supportive of projects like Union at Middle Creek.

“When we’re looking at new projects and providing investments in the communities, if the community is not supportive of us, we’re not going to go there. We want to be in places where we’re welcome. We want to be the catalyst," he said.  “It’s very rare that you can get all these people working together to kind of create this, and that’s why I think you guys have been so successful.”

The City Council authorized using a total of $82 million in housing revenue bonds for the three projects. The city acts as a conduit for the bonds, but the developer pays them back, so the city doesn’t incur any liability.

The City Council also approved using tax-increment financing, or TIF, on two of the projects totaling $9 million. TIF allows developers to use future property taxes the redevelopment generates to pay for certain upfront costs.

Shannon Harner, executive director of Nebraska Investment Finance Authority, which is responsible for allocating federal and state low-income housing tax credits to projects, said the state has its own goal of creating 35,000 affordable units by 2028 and they're not as far along on their goal as Lincoln.

“We hold up the city of Lincoln as a shining example of what gets measured, gets done," she said.

Union at Middle Creek targets rents for people making up to 60% of the Area Median Income, which is $42,900 for a one-person household and $61,260 for a four-person household. Property amenities include a clubhouse, fitness center, nature trail, and a balcony or patio for all units.

Tomaszewski said the company decided to build Union at Middle Creek at Southwest 27th and West A streets because it's an "amenity-rich area" within one mile of a grocery store, bank and public transportation.