MAPS 4 homelessness update: 589 units delivered in first allocation; city to reissue RFP for supportive-housing operator

Oklahoma City officials on June 5 told the MAPS 4 Citizen Advisory Board that the first $10.7 million MAPS allocation for homelessness has produced 589 housing units and that the city will reissue a request for proposals (RFP) for an operating partner to run a MAPS-funded housing project that emphasizes permanent supportive housing.

The update, delivered by a representative of the Oklahoma City Housing Authority, laid out completed and pipeline projects funded by the first allocation and the start of the second allocation; the board then voted to advertise an RFP that AJ Kirkpatrick of ADG said will prioritize longer-term, permanent supportive housing while reserving at least 30% of units for shorter-term transitions.

The update matters because MAPS 4 funds are intended to produce permanent and supportive housing options for people experiencing homelessness and because the newly issued RFP sets the city's operational expectations, timeline and funding requirements for the operating partner who will run the proposed facility adjacent to the planned MAPS 4 restoration center.

Greg Shen, presenting for the Oklahoma City Housing Authority, said the program's first allocation committed MAPS dollars across multiple projects: $1,000,000 to Oak Grove; $2,500,000 to Creston Park; $3,000,000 to the motel conversion "Vita Nova" (76 units); and $1,500,000 to Dorset Place (37 units in phase 1). Shen said Dorset Place is owned by the housing authority and is…