Board advances tax agreement for River Square rehabilitation to add affordable units

The Mahoning Board of Alders moved to approve a tax agreement application from Property Tax Research LLC, submitted on behalf of Community Preservation Partners (CPP), for rehabilitation of River Square at 97 River Road, Parcel Number 8038.

The project’s backers told the aldermen the rehabilitation would expand the property’s mix of units from the current level (reported in remarks as 36 and elsewhere as 38) to 84 affordable units and 20 market-rate units, preserving and renewing an existing Housing Assistance Payments (HAP) contract tied to project-based vouchers and extending affordability controls through Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) requirements. ‘‘We are utilizing historic tax credits as part of the financing for this, which requires us to abide by certain historic standards,’’ said Diana of Beacon Communities, a project partner.

Why it matters: Aldermen and residents said the plan preserves a longtime, historically significant building while increasing the city’s stock of deeply affordable apartments. The applicants and partners said the financing package will combine historic tax credits, state tax credits, bond financing and conventional sources; they also said the property will remain on the National Park Service historic registry as required by the historic-credit process.

Project details offered at the meeting included an estimated renovation cost of about $100,000 per unit, a projected construction timeline of about 15 months, and a proposed ownership split of roughly 60% Community Preservation Partners and 40% Beacon (the firms will form an LLC to hold the property). Beacon Residential Management was identified as the planned property manager after closing. The developers said most of the building’s units are occupied, with roughly seven vacant units available to stage renovations and that they have set aside $100,000 to provide alternate housing or relocation support if needed. Officials said they do not expect off-site relocation for tenants ‘‘at this time.’’

Alder discussion and public comment: Multiple alder members and speakers from the neighborhood expressed support, praising prior management at the site and the developers’ stated plans to limit displacement and maintain the building’s historic character. A resident raised accessibility concerns; a project representative said the exact number of wheelchair-accessible units would be provided after the meeting. Committee members also asked about elevator maintenance and were told the owner will maintain a third-party elevator service contract.

Contract and subsidy notes: Speakers said the existing HAP (project-based Section 8) contract will remain in place and will be renewed for an additional 20 years; the HAP contract will continue to cover the deeply subsidized portion of the property while LIHTC set-asides and income averaging will govern additional units across a 30–year affordability period as described by project representatives. The applicants said the affordability mix would range from about 30% to 80% of area median income under the LIHTC income-averaging plan.

Procedural outcome: After closing the public comment portion, an alder moved and seconded that the committee forward the tax agreement application favorably for approval. Members voted in favor; the chair declared the ayes had it and closed the meeting. The item and related documents were noted as on file and available for public inspection in the office of legislative services.

Next steps: Applicants said the ownership LLC and financing are nearly finalized and that closing is expected as soon as the remaining pieces are in place; developers said they will supply follow-up details requested by aldermen (exact counts of accessible units, unit-level subsidy breakdowns and any final occupancy figures) as the project advances.