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Presentation, discussion, and possible action regarding a waiver of 10 TAC §1.15(d) for Village Apartments
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RECOMMENDED ACTION
recommendation
WHEREAS, Village Apartments is proposed to be a 2025 9% Housing Tax Credit Application, although the full Application has not been submitted as of the date of this meeting;
WHEREAS, 10 TAC §1.15, the Integrated Housing Rule, would generally require that no more than 25% of the Units at Village Apartments be set aside for Households with Disabilities, and would prohibit restricting occupancy of those Units solely to Households with Disabilities;
WHEREAS, the Application’s sponsor is a non-profit organization with an extensive history of working with persons with disabilities, and the Applicant has requested a waiver of 10 TAC §1.15 to allow for up to 50% of the proposed Development to be exclusively reserved for Households with Disabilities; and
WHEREAS, such a waiver is explicitly allowed by the rules, and staff finds no compelling reason to deny the request;
NOW, therefore, it is hereby
RESOLVED, that the requested waiver of 10 TAC §1.15(d)(1) and 10 TAC §1.15(d)(2) for Village Apartments is hereby approved, and the Applicant may set aside up to 50% of the units for Households with Disabilities should the Application be successfully funded.
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BACKGROUND
Village Apartments is a proposed 2025 9% competitive Housing Tax Credit Application that anticipates constructing 93 Units in Waco. Friends for Life is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that is proposed to be part of the managing member of the general partner. Friends for Life has an extensive history of serving both elderly persons and persons with disabilities, with a specific emphasis on finding members of those populations who do not have a support system in place to care for them.
10 TAC §1.15, the Integrated Housing Rule, requires that a Development of this size set aside no more than 25% of the Units for Households with Disabilities; however, §1.15(e) specifies that, “The Board may waive the requirements of this rule if the Board can affirm that the waiver of the rule is necessary to serve a population or subpopulation that would not be adequately served without the waiver, and that the Development, even with the waiver, does not substantially deviate from the principle of Integrated Housing.”
The Applicant has requested to be able to set aside up to 50% of the Units at Village Apartments to exclusively serve Households with Disabilities. This higher set-aside will allow the sponsor to serve more households with disabilities, provide necessary supportive services more efficiently, and more effective design the buildings to address the needs of this population, while still adhering to the principle of Integrated Housing.
Given the sponsor’s history working with Households with Disabilities, staff finds no compelling reason to deny this request, and accordingly recommends that it be approved. No competitive advantage has been identified in connection with this waiver. Additionally, approval of this item does not constitute an award of funding, not does it guarantee that the Application will be successful if submitted.