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Flagstaff updates on RAD, bond-funded projects and new affordable units as part of housing work session
Summary
City housing staff updated council on Rental Assistance Demonstration planning, exhausted homebuyer down-payment bond funds, adaptive-reuse work, and several completed or under-construction affordable rental and ownership projects including Villas on Lake Mary and Timber Sky developments.
Flagstaff housing staff briefed the City Council on April 22, outlining next steps for the Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) planning process, the status of bond-funded programs, and recent affordable-housing completions and projects underway.
City housing staff said the city has published a request for qualifications (RFQ) to identify a partner for a community homebuyer assistance program; responses are due May 6. Staff also reported that funds for the Community Home Buyer Assistance down-payment program were fully exhausted after four February closings, while employer-assisted housing funds remain available. An RFP for a consultant to guide the city’s RAD planning has been published; responses are due May 26.
Assistant Housing Director Justina Costa told the council the RAD consultant process will ‘‘most likely’’ begin with the Siler Homes public-housing site and emphasized that ‘‘no one will lose their housing at any point during this process.’’ Costa said the RAD process will include a community engagement phase for current residents.
Staff reported housing production and preservation numbers tied to the city’s 10-year housing plan: 273 affordable units created or preserved to date and another 481 units committed. Recent completions include Villas on Lake Mary (76 “light-touch” units affordable to households at 60% of area median income or below) and 32 units at Aura Apartments, both now leased or leasing. Habitat for Humanity of Northern Arizona is advancing a starter-home project at Timber Sky with a June blitz build planned; Sierra on 66 (221 fully affordable units at 60% AMI) is under development in the same area. Elkwood Apartments, with 22 affordable units, is slated to open in August 2025.
Staff also said work continues on an adaptive-reuse incentive program (code amendments and technical changes to the affordable housing incentive policy), and that draft zoning and incentive changes will be discussed with the Housing Commission on April 25. Rental-incentive bond awards from a previous NOFA were approved March 18; staff are preparing loan documents and expect to know by June whether any first-round allocations will be returned and reissued.
Council members asked about geographic scope and resident engagement for RAD and about occupancy and lease-up timelines for recently completed projects. Costa and other staff said they will provide additional neighborhood- and project-level details by email when available.
The housing update included public outreach plans for Fair Housing Month and reminders about an April 25 fair-housing training offering continuing education credits for realtors and open to the public.
