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Presentation, discussion, and possible action regarding a Material Amendment to the Housing Tax Credit Application for Palo Verde Senior Apartments (HTC #25013)
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RECOMMENDED ACTION
recommendation
WHEREAS, Palo Verde Senior Apartments (the Development) received an award of 9% Housing Tax Credits (HTCs) for the construction of 75 multifamily units for the elderly in Corpus Christi, Nueces County;
WHEREAS, Corpus Christi Huntwick Avenue LP (the Applicant) requests approval for a material amendment to the Application for a change to the architectural design, which also includes an increase to the number of units from 75 to 80, a reduction of 3,657 square feet (25.83%) to Common Area, and an increase to the Net Rentable Area (NRA);
WHEREAS, Board approval is required for a significant modification of the architectural design of the Development, a modification of the number of units or bedroom mix of units, and a reduction of 3% or more in the square footage of the units or common areas as directed in Tex. Gov’t Code §2306.6712(d)(2), (4), and (5) and 10 TAC §10.405(a)(4)(B), (D), and (E), and the Applicant has complied with the amendment requirements therein;
WHEREAS, Board approval of this amendment does not constitute a waiver of any of the rules or statutes applicable to the 2025 HTC Application, including but not limited to the accessibility requirements stated in Chapter 1, Subchapter B; and
WHEREAS, the requested changes do not negatively affect the Development, impact the viability of the transaction, impact the scoring of the Application, or change the amount of the tax credits awarded;
NOW, therefore, it is hereby
RESOLVED, that the requested amendment for Palo Verde Senior Apartments is approved as presented at this meeting, and the Executive Director and his designees are each hereby authorized, directed, and empowered to take all necessary action to effectuate the foregoing.
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BACKGROUND
Palo Verde Senior Apartments received a 9% HTC award in 2025 to construct 75 affordable units for the elderly in Corpus Christi, Nueces County. In a letter dated February 3, 2026, Sallie Burchett, representative for the Applicant, requested approval for changes to the architectural design, increasing the total number of units by 6.67%, from 75 to 80. The five additional units will be market rate units. The revised unit mix will consist of 41 one-bedroom units and 39 two-bedroom units instead of the originally proposed 38 one-bedroom units and 37 two-bedroom units. This change resulted in an increase in the net rentable area from 54,250 square feet at Application to 57,750 square feet, which is an increase of 6.45% or 3,500 square feet, and a reduction of 25.83% or 3,657 square feet in the Common Area, from 14,156 square feet to 10,499 square feet. It should also be noted that the Applicant received approval from the City of Corpus Christi Development Services Department to reduce the number of parking spaces to a ratio of 0.875 spaces per dwelling unit, or a total of 70 parking spaces. Originally, it was anticipated that 148 parking spaces would be provided.
The Applicant states the reason for the requested changes is that the contractor bids were much higher than anticipated and the design documents revealed inefficiencies in design. The Applicant explained that, despite best efforts during the pre-development phase, they were unable to anticipate the increases in cost. The overabundance of non-rentable area, along with the contractor bids, proved the proposed design was infeasible. Therefore, the developer and designer created a simpler architectural design that maintains the original projected financial feasibility. Adding the market rate units and reducing the common area was a cost-effective way for the Development to be feasible.
The Development was re-underwritten with the proposed amendment and revised financial information. The analysis supports no change to the HTC allocation and demonstrates the Development remains feasible.
Staff confirmed that the revised architectural design plans will continue to meet accessibility requirements. Additionally, staff reviewed the original Application and scoring documentation against this amendment request and has concluded that none of the changes would have resulted in selection or threshold criteria changes that would have affected the selection of the Application in the competitive round. However, due to the increase from 75 to 80 units, the Development must now provide seven points of common amenities instead of the four points required originally.
Staff recommends approval of the amendment request as presented herein.