Prescott council approves Woda Cooper 82‑unit affordable project with five amendments, votes 7‑0

Prescott City Council voted unanimously March 24 to approve a development agreement with Woda Cooper Development Inc. for an 82‑unit affordable housing development and to authorize the city manager to execute related documents after incorporating five amendments requested by the city attorney.

Chelsea Walton, community development director, introduced the item and said staff had reviewed and edited drafts of the city commitment letter, fee waiver letters and the development agreement to reflect staff changes and make them available for council review. She told council the water service application had been approved on March 10 and that a replat combining four parcels would be required before building permits could be issued.

Developer representative Omer Sarig presented the Lakeview Grove proposal and described its affordability and compliance commitments. He said the community would total 82 units, with the developer committing 60 years of affordability and full payment of property taxes. Sarig provided a unit breakdown the council asked to have placed into the development agreement: 21 units at 30% area median income (AMI), 43 units at 50% AMI, 12 units at 70% AMI and 6 units at 80% AMI. He said the project’s one‑bedroom rents were expected to range roughly “from $500 to $1,236 per month” and that utilities (water, sewer, electricity, heating/cooling) were included in the rent figures they presented.

Councilors pressed for clarity on affordability terms and tenant rules. The developer said tenant screening would require proof of income, credit and background checks and that the LIHTC (Low‑Income Housing Tax Credit) application would fix income bands and rents at the state level; the developer also said the state conducts annual compliance checks. On the question of how long affordability binds the property, the developer stated a 60‑year commitment and agreed to reflect that in the recorded documents.

City Attorney identified five amendments the council should require: (1) include the number of units at each AMI band in Exhibit C of the development agreement, (2) amend the 2004 Lakeview Plaza development agreement to remove the portion that encumbers the project parcel (or otherwise address that area), (3) add explicit language on how median income is determined and how frequently it is updated, (4) change the workforce housing covenant from 50 to 60 years in both the development agreement and the Land Use Restriction Agreement, and (5) require that any notices under the contract also be sent to the city attorney.

Councilman Gamboge moved approval of the development agreement with Woda Cooper, the city commitments in support of the developer’s LIHTC application, and authorization for the city manager to execute the agreement and related documents, incorporating the five attorney‑recommended amendments; Councilman Patrick Grady seconded. The motion passed 7‑0.

The council’s approval allows staff to finalize the city commitment and fee waiver letters and to work with the developer on the replat and permit steps needed to move the project forward to construction. The development will still be subject to the terms of the executed agreement, the developer’s LIHTC application, and state compliance requirements.