November 2007 Table of Contents

Featured
BEST MASTER-PLANNED/MIXED-USE PROJECT:New Neighborhood Rises in Portland

PORTLAND, ORE.—New Columbia isn’t just a public housing development. It is a brand new neighborhood.  Read more

BEST OVERALL PROJECT:Readers Laud Solar-Powered Tax Credit Development

POWAY, CALIF.—At a time when “going green” has become a catchphrase and marketing slogan, a small 56-unit project here stands out as a promising model for a comprehensive approach to energy conservation and environmental responsibility. Read more

Projects, Programs Launched in the West

Jack London Gateway, a proposed 60-unit affordable housing development for seniors in Oakland, Calif., is among the projects receiving a reservation of low-income housing tax credits (LIHTCs) in the state this year. Read more

Remembering the Forgotten

SAN FRANCISCO—The Rev. Glenda Hope stands in the lobby of an old residential hotel and says a prayer. Read more

Albany Fights Blight with HOPE VI

ALBANY, N.Y.—Abandoned lots and burned-out houses cluster in some of Albany’s oldest neighborhoods. Read more

Centerline First Fully Delegated Lender Under Freddie Mac Program

Centerline Capital Group has become the first multifamily lender to achieve fully delegated status under Freddie Mac’s Delegated Underwriting for Targeted Affordable Housing program Read more

$3.9 Billion in NMTCs Announced

Sixty-one organizations have been selected to receive $3.9 billion in New Markets Tax Credits (NMTCs) this year in the fifth round of allocations. Eleven organizations received $400 million in tax credits for redevelopment efforts in the hurricane-damaged Gulf Coast, according to the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund, which made the awards announcement Oct. 5 in New Orleans. Read more

BEST HISTORIC REHAB PROJECT: Midtown Exchange a Stabilizing Force

MINNEAPOLIS—The Midtown Exchange Apartments, a 219-unit development located within the massive Midtown Exchange building in South Minneapolis, has had a stabilizing effect on its neighborhood. Read more

Best of the Best

Innovative, diverse, and green: That’s what describes the projects selected to receive AFFORDABLE HOUSING FINANCE’s 2007 Readers’ Choice Awards for the Nation’s Best Affordable Housing Developments. Read more

Tax-Exempt Bond Demand Likely To Rise

Demand for tax-exempt bond financing is likely to jump in 2008, partly as a result of the subprime lending crisis that rocked capital markets over the summer and sent spreads on conduit loans soaring, bond professionals say. Read more

Veto Threat Clouds HUD Funding Proposal

The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), like the rest of the federal government, has started fiscal 2008 without a regular appropriations bill in place and an uncertain funding outlook as a Democratic majority in Congress seeking more money for domestic programs confronts a Republican White House determined to hold the line on spending. Read more

BEST SENIORS PROJECT:Public Housing Redevelopment Leads Revival

WASHINGTON, D.C.—When the Washington Nationals start playing baseball in their new stadium next spring, the elderly residents of Arthur Capper Senior Apartments will have a short walk to take in a game. Read more

Building and Saving Housing in Hawaii

HONOLULU—EAH Housing is at the center of two major affordable housing deals in Hawaii this year. Read more

HUD Contracting Investigation Heats Up

The contracting practices of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) are under investigation by at least four federal law enforcement bodies as charges continue to surface about corruption and favoritism in contracting decisions. Read more

BEST OVERALL PROJECT:Lord Tennyson Solves Preservation Puzzle

HAYWARD, CALIF.—The residents at the Lord Tennyson Apartments are a tight-knit group. That’s what Rosalind Cosby likes about living at the development.  Read more

BEST FAMILY PROJECT:Reviving a Rundown Neighborhood

ROCHESTER, N.Y.—Dorothy Hall was saddened to see Victorian homes abandoned here, their millwork ornaments and front porches falling in ruin. Read more

Jackson’s Stake in HOPE VI Questioned

Alphonso Jackson, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Read more

Tax-Exempt Bond Financing Weathers the Storm

Tax-exempt bond financing will be readily available and affordable in 2008, with industry watchers reporting that price increases were rare even as the capital markets remained in flux heading into the fourth quarter of 2007. Read more

Construction Financing Unscathed by Credit Crunch

Affordable housing developers will be able to procure construction financing next year with relative ease, even as the rates and terms of permanent debt become more challenging. Read more

BEST PRESERVATION PROJECT:Turning a Rundown Property Around

FREDERICKSBURG, VA.—Sonya Ellis remembers when her mother’s apartment got shot up by a gunman several years ago.  Read more

BEST SPECIAL-NEEDS PROJECT:Chicago Development Changing Lives

CHICAGO—Anthony Sugel has a place to call home. He moved into his new apartment March 1.  Read more

Urban Village

SAN JOSE, CALIF.—For Colleen Lamarr, the new apartment she shares with her two young daughters means no longer commuting more than an hour to work. Lamarr and her girls are one of the 300 families that have moved into Corde Terra Village, the newest affordable housing development in San Jose. Read more

BEST URBAN PROJECT:Project Binds Housing and Library

SAN FRANCISCO—David Sandow was homeless for six years before moving into his new apartment. Read more

BEST RURAL PROJECT: Full Circle

WOMELSDORF, PA.—Betty Schoener worked at a textile factory sewing sleeves onto blouses back in 1964.  Read more

Centerline First Fully Delegated Lender Under Freddie Mac Program

Centerline Capital Group has become the first multifamily lender to achieve fully delegated status under Freddie Mac’s Delegated Underwriting for Targeted Affordable Housing program Read more

The Write Stuff for Housing

As we close in on the end of the first year of the Democratic-controlled 110th Congress, there’s good news and bad news for affordable housing. Read more

The Next Generation of Affordable Housing Leaders

AFFORDABLE HOUSING FINANCE magazine is very excited about a new feature we are planning.  Read more

SOUTH CAROLINA

COLUMBIA—South Carolina is revising its 2008 qualified allocation plan (QAP) for low-income housing tax credits (LIHTCs) to beef up its criteria for rehabilitation projects and offer extra points to developers with experience working with LIHTC-financed projects. Read more

SOUTH DAKOTA

PIERRE—Developers working in South Dakota will notice a few significant changes in the state’s 2008 qualified allocation plan (QAP). Read more

BEST HOMEOWNERSHIP PROJECT: The VillagePeople

WILMINGTON, DEL.—Keith Campbell is amazed at the transformation of this Eastlake neighborhood where he recently bought his new home. Read more

Rural Housing Pushes Forward

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The long-awaited bill to preserve affordable rural housing is still hung up in Congress. Read more

Entering Uncharted Waters

The outlook for affordable housing in the coming year is probably better than it was a year ago, but only slightly. Read more

Experts Review Progress, Future Goals for CRA

In the mid-1970s, community activists learned that it was no coincidence that housing in many innercity areas that were undergoing a change in their ethnic makeup was deteriorating.  Read more

Q&A with Tom Bledsoe, president of the Housing Partnership Network

TOM BLEDSOE is president of the Housing Partnership Network, an award-winning alliance of some of the nation’s top nonprofit development organizations.  Read more

Building With Families in Mind

PORTLAND, ORE.—The need for large affordable apartments for families spurred ROSE Community Development to build its latest project. Read more

CRA’s Anniversary: Much to Celebrate and Much Yet to Do

As we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), we are grateful that CRA has generated an extraordinary increase in access to credit and capital for working class and minority communities Read more

Should You Go Smoke-Free?

The city of Belmont, Calif., imposed a smoking ban at all rental properties in September.  Read more

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