Sutherlin moves to form nonprofit to manage Oak Street Commons; town hall set for March 24

Summary

Council and project advisors said the city will proceed with forming a 501(c)(3) to own and operate Oak Street Commons workforce housing, with a town hall scheduled for March 24. City leaders said $2.8 million in state grant funding is in hand and another $3 million is being sought to cover infrastructure costs for phase 1.

Sutherlin city staff and project consultants told the City Council on Jan. 13 that the city will proceed with forming a 501(c)(3) nonprofit to own, operate and oversee Oak Street Commons, a planned workforce-housing development, and that a community town hall will be held March 24 from 7:00 to about 8:30 p.m.

The plan to form a separate nonprofit is intended to give the project an organizational owner that can manage governance, grant applications and long-term operations. Mike Schrader, a consultant with ORIC, described Oak Street Commons as a public–private partnership and said the nonprofit would be a special-purpose Oregon nonprofit corporation that files for federal tax-exempt status through the Internal Revenue Service.

Why it matters: council members and advisors said having a nonprofit owner will make the project eligible for certain grants, allow tax-exempt financing and create an oversight body to manage deed restrictions, a community land trust and affordability rules. City staff said the project already has a major…

Sutherlin moves to form nonprofit to manage Oak Street Commons; town hall set for March 24

Summary

Subscribe to keep reading