|
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, December 17, 2007
| Contact: |
Connie Rivera, Capital Finance Manager,
360-709-3003 |
|
Dwight Edwards, Community Housing Program
Coordinator, 360-709-3003 |
Affordable
Housing Proposals Sought by County
Olympia-
Thurston
County
is soliciting housing development proposals from non-profit and for-profit
organizations that will create affordable housing units for homeless
households and low income families in the County.
Proposals will be accepted for capital projects and services that
support the proposed project. Projects
must be for acquisition and/or development of new units, the preservation of
existing housing units, the conversion of non-residential buildings to housing
use, or any combination thereof.
Thurston
County
will select proposals that are consistent with the goals established in the
county’s 2003-2007 Consolidated Plan and Ten-Year Homeless Plan. Preference
will be given to projects that leverage the funds to be awarded through this
process by combining these funds with money from other sources, including but
not limited to the State Housing Trust Fund.
The Thurston County HOME Consortium (comprised of
Thurston
County
and the incorporated cities and towns of Bucoda, Lacey,
Olympia
,
Rainier
, Tenino, Tumwater, and Yelm) guides use of federal housing funds and local
housing funds. This request for
proposals is for the awarding of Affordable and Homeless Housing funds only.
Thurston
County
anticipates awarding up to $1.4 million of funding generated by the Affordable
Housing Program (RCW 36.22.178) and Homeless Housing Program (RCW 36.22.179).
This funding is provided by the Washington State Legislature’s
passage of three major housing bills that dedicate surcharges on fees for
recording documents to programs that address the need for affordable housing
and reduction of homelessness. The
county reserves the right not to award all funds this funding cycle, depending
on the quality of proposals received and the availability of funds.
Additional
terms and conditions:
·
All projects
must serve very low-income persons or households.
·
Successful
applicants are required to adhere to HUD’s Fair Housing Act standards and
State laws that govern the landlord-tenant relationship as set forth at RCW
59.18.
·
Housing
projects must adhere to and meet HUD Housing Quality Standards and
Thurston
County
’s Housing Property Standards.
·
Development
fees may not exceed 5% of the funding award.
·
Successful
applicants will provide an annual performance report to the county through the
affordability period.
·
Thurston
County
reserves the right to
negotiate additional terms and conditions as deemed appropriate based on the
nature of the proposal.
The
submission of a Letter of Intent is required as part of the proposal
submission process. The letter
will serve notice that an organization plans to apply for funding.
The purpose of the notice is to identify the number of proposals that
may be submitted and to determine if the county needs to make additional
efforts to solicit more proposals. The
Letter of Intent must be submitted no later than 5:00 p.m., Friday, December
21, 2007. Proposals are due no later than 5:00 P.M., Friday January 11, 2008.
Those
who would like a proposal packet or who need more information should contact Dwight
Edwards, Community Housing Program Coordinator, at 360-709-3003
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