October 2018 DHCD Connection Newsletter
District of Columbia sent this bulletin at 10/17/2018 06:57 PM EDT
Capitol Vista Will Add Affordable Housing to
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On Day 2 of Housing Week, Mayor Bowser and her housing team broke ground at Capitol Vista, a 104-unit affordable housing community in the Mount Vernon Triangle neighborhood in Ward 6. All units will be set aside for households earning up to 50 percent MFI or $58,600 for a family of four. The project will include 3,000 square feet of ground floor retail and space for public art. |
October 2018 Edition
On Nov. 15, Share Your Input on DC's FY18 Affordable Housing and Community Development Work
DHCD is soliciting public comments on the District’s effectiveness during FY 2018 at using federal funds to meet the city’s housing and community development needs. This is in preparation for submitting the FY18 Consolidated Annual Performance and Evaluation Report (CAPER) to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).
Details
- Date: November 15, 2018
- Time: 6:30 p.m.
- Location: Marshall Heights Community Development Organization, 3939 Benning Road NE
- RSVP here
DHCD Seeks Offers to
Transform Ward 7 Site into Affordable Housing
DHCD has released a Solicitation for Offers (SFO) to transform a parcel at 58th and Dix Streets NE into a mixed use development with affordable housing in the Northeast Boundary community of Ward 7.
The affordable rental housing would target households making no more than $93,760 (80 percent MFI for a family of four).
A pre-bid meeting is being held so interested parties can learn more about the parcels and the solicitation process:
- Date: October 30, 2018
- Time: 6:00 p.m.
- Location: DHCD Housing Resource Center
- RSVP here
The deadline for submitting proposals is December 28, 2018.
As a reminder, you have until October 29 to submit proposals in response to two SFOs in Ward 8:
Go here to request access in order to submit a proposal for the sites. For additional information and questions, contact padd.sfo@dc.gov.
Quick Links
Here are some links to popular DHCD services:
- DHCD Income Limits: Can help determine your eligibility for DHCD programs.
- Inclusionary Zoning (IZ): Get an overview of this affordable housing tool.
- IZ Dashboard: View a map and/or table of IZ projects.
- Community-Based Organizations (CBOs): Provide services such as housing counseling and small business technical assistance.
- Home Purchase Assistance: Learn about how we help residents get the keys to their own home.
- Rent Control Forms: Access forms for housing providers and tenants.
Video Stories
Five homeowners share how it is possible to purchase affordable housing in DC.
This video shares how we are helping residents by producing and preserving affordable housing, and revitalizing neighborhoods. |
We had great memories from the 10th Annual DC Housing Expo and Home Show. See video clips here and here (the second is thanks to WHUR).
Other News of Note
Conway Center Wins National Housing AwardThe Conway Center, a $90 million development by So Others Might Eat (SOME), is one of five winners of the Jack Kemp Excellence in Affordable and Workforce Housing Award. The award, which honors exemplary developments that ensure housing affordability for people with a range of incomes, is sponsored by the Urban Land Institute (ULI) Terwilliger Center for Housing. Eligible developments are those in which all or a portion of the units are affordable to households earning up to 120 percent MFI. SOME developed 202 units of affordable rental housing as part of a mixed-use project in Ward 7. The Center offer services such as addiction treatment, job training and counseling. DHCD provided over $17 million in HPTF financing for the project. The five winning projects, which were chosen by a jury of national housing leaders, were recognized October 9 during the ULI’s 2018 Fall Meeting in Boston. |
Team DHCD Welcomes Capital City Fellows
- Jayla Johnson has joined DHCD for her second rotation in the Capital City Fellows program through March 20, 2019.Her first rotation was with the DC Department of Human Services, where she worked on efforts to improve communication and outreach at service centers and through their SNAP program. She has extensive work experience conducting research and program development for initiatives primarily in Africa. At DHCD, she will assist with the implementation of preservation programs and support the development of an affordable housing database. Jayla has a Master in Science from The London School of Economics and Political Science and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Michigan-Ann Arbor.
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Diane Patterson is also in her second rotation and joined DHCD’s Inclusionary zoning (IZ) team in September. Previously, Diane spent six months at the DC Department of Transportation, where she conducted research and analysis on transportation operations best practices and performance metrics in an effort to assess the impact of transportation projects and draft the agency’s first Transportation Systems Management and Operations Plan. Diane has a Master of Community Planning Degree from the University of Maryland, College Park and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California, San Diego.
Team DHCD: About Town
Following are some highlights of recent DHCD outreach and educational activities.
Helping Our Seniors Deal with a Housing Crisis. When our seniors suffer tragedies like the three-alarm fire at the Arthur Capper Senior Building on September 19, Mayor Bowser mobilizes her entire team. In this case, DHCD and other housing agencies worked to help displaced residents find new homes. This included reaching out to developers and other partners, setting up a dedicated email address to receive responses, and using our DCHousingSearch.org database to find vacant units for immediate occupancy. Director Donaldson also joined the Mayor and the rest of her team in celebrating the resilience of the displaced residents during an October 4 luncheon. |
DHCD Panel Kicked Off Community Development Week. On October 15, Director Donaldson moderated a panel discussion on "Looking Ahead to Affordable Housing Investment," as the kick off event for Community Development Week, sponsored by the Coalition for Nonprofit Housing and Economic Development (CNHED) Before the panel’s start, Donaldson presented a Mayoral Proclamation to CNHED President/CEO Steve Glaude. In her opening remarks, she noted that despite the District's historic investments in affordable housing, we cannot do it alone. That’s why private sector partners, as well as lenders and other financial institutions, are vital to securing more affordable housing, and meeting the Mayor’s goal of inclusive prosperity for District residents. The panelists were DMPED Director of Special Projects Jonathan Kayne, JBG Smith Executive Vice President AJ Jackson,and Housing Up Vice President of Affordable Housing Development Julia Moran Morton. |
Looking at the The Past, Present and Future of Affordable and Fair Housing. On October 2, Deputy Director Allison Ladd was interviewed as part of the Beyond "The Great Society"—Creating Opportunity for All in the 21st Century conference sponsored by Government Executive and Route Fifty. Ladd explained the affordable housing successes in DC’s hot housing market, such as IZ, tenant purchase rights, and the HPTF, which allows the city to fund 20 to 30 projects a year, representing 1,600 to 1,700 units. Ladd also noted Mayor Bowser’s goal is for District residents to have an affordable place to live, whether they've lived here five minutes or five generations and how that has resulted in new initiatives. You can view the complete livestream here (you have to register). |
Explaining DHCD's Federal and Local Policy Role in Tenant Rights. Director Donaldson did double duty at the September 29 Office of the Tenant Advocate (OTA) Summit. First, she joined several panelists in a discussion of federal, and local, policy regarding affordable housing. There, she noted the Fair Housing Act and its requirement that we “affirmatively” further fair housing remains alive and well and DC is committed to addressing fair housing impediments. To that end, DHCD will soon begin its update of the 2011 Fair Housing Analysis of Impediments, as well as the separate CAPER public input process (see article in right column). Next, she represented Mayor Bowser in providing welcoming remarks during the OTA luncheon, and helped present community awards, such as the Tenant of the Year Award to Juanita McKenzie. |
TOPA is Always a Hot Topic with Tenants and Housing Providers. On October 10, DHCD’s Rental Conversion and Sale Division met with tenants and housing providers to help them understand their rights and responsibilities under the Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act. This law gives tenant groups the first right to purchase their apartment building when it goes up for sale. |
APA Planners Get Tour of Inclusionary Zoning Properties. More than 300 of the District’s IZ units are located in the 14th Street corridor. So when members of the American Planning Association (APA), in town for their annual conference, wanted to get the best sense of how IZ provides affordable housing in transforming neighborhoods, they took a walking tour. Gene Bulmash, DHCD’s IZ manager, and Art Rodgers, senior housing planner for the D.C. Office of Planning, led the September 23 tour of 14 IZ, HPTF, affordable dwelling unit and low-income housing tax credit properties. The rental and sale units were designated at 50, 60 and 80 percent MFI. Bulmash explained that the IZ program has been operating for less than 10 years, with the first units available in 2011, and has produced almost 700 units to date in about 95 properties. He added that another 60 projects containing approximately 400 IZ units are under construction.
Mark Your Calendars for Upcoming Events
Please note these upcoming events. Don't forget to sign up for DHCD event alerts to get regular announcements and updates, as well as registration information through Eventbrite, and check our website for events from CBOs and other partners.
- October 24, 12:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.: Let's Talk Rent Control: Filing Annual and Vacancy Rent Increases. Location: DHCD Housing Resource Center
- October 27, 12:00 p.m.: Vacant to Vibrant DC: Tiny House Tours. Location: 1109 50th Place NE
- October 28, 1:00 p.m.: Vacant to Vibrant DC: Tiny House Tours. Location: 1109 50th Place NE
- October 30, 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.: Pre-bid Meeting: Transform 58th and Dix St. NE Site into Affordable Housing. Location: DHCD Housing Resource Center
- November 5, 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.: Public Hearing on Transforming Anacostia Site into Family-sized Condos. Location: DHCD First Floor Conference Room
- November 14, 6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.: Public Hearing on Transforming 2629 Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE. Location: DHCD First Floor Conference Room
- November 15, 6:30 p.m.: Public Hearing on DC's FY18 Affordable Housing/Community Development Work. Location: Marshall Heights Community Development Organization, 3939 Benning Road NE
See Latest Affordable Housing StatsThe Bowser Administration is producing and preserving more affordable housing than ever before in the District's history. See the latest statistics from the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development's dashboard (see graphic), as well as a pipeline report of DHCD-specific projects. |