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Commissioners recommend CDBG application to rehabilitate Laurel Gardens, back LB Lofts affordable housing
Summary
Homefront and developer Homeward presented a plan to rehabilitate Laurel Gardens and fold it into an LB Lofts project; commissioners recommended the applicants proceed with a Community Development Block Grant application to help fund interior renovations and preserve 30 senior units.
Homefront representatives on Sept. 24 urged Yellowstone County commissioners to back an application for Community Development Block Grant funds to complete interior renovations at Laurel Gardens and help fund a larger affordable housing project in Billings.
Amber Uslak, director of assets for Homefront, and Heather McMillan, project development director for Homeward, described a two-part plan that would place Laurel Gardens—acquired by Homefront in February 2020 and originally built in 1977—on the 4% side of a Montana Housing tax-credit application tied to a new LB Lofts development on Sioux Lane. McMillan said Homefront has already invested $2,000,000 in critical exterior repairs at Laurel Gardens and needs additional funding for interior work, including updated kitchens, appliances and mechanical and plumbing systems.
"We invested $2,000,000 of our own money into the project knowing we most likely couldn't get it back," McMillan said. "Including Laurel Gardens in this application lets us complete the interior renovations and keep those senior homes affordable for the long term."
The LB Lofts component would convert premanufactured modular units (referred to in the presentation as "pods") into multifamily apartments. McMillan said about 202 pods would be recycled into approximately 101 new homes on Sioux Lane, while preserving the 30 senior units at Laurel Gardens. She described the approach as a cost-saving measure that makes the overall project more feasible in the current construction environment.
County staff member Diane noted that the CDBG program requires a second public hearing before submission and summarized that earlier public input had identified affordable housing for low- and moderate-income residents as a county priority. Architect Al Repaz of Schutzvoss Architects, who worked on Laurel Gardens phase 1 exterior repairs, told commissioners the building's interiors now need a full renovation.
Chair (S1) closed the hearing after no speakers registered opposition and said the board's role at the session was to provide a recommendation rather than take final action. The board advised Homefront and its development partner to proceed with the CDBG application.
What happens next: Homefront and Homeward may submit a CDBG application in the second-round grant opportunity this fall and will pursue Montana Housing tax credits as part of the financing package. The commissioners' recommendation is advisory; funding and tax-credit awards are decisions made by the CDBG program administrators and Montana Housing.
