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Iowa City staff outline loan-backed Orchard Court LIHTC plan; council gives direction to continue negotiations
Summary
City Manager Jeff Fruin presented a proposed $57 million Orchard Court development using a $5.1 million city loan from Riverfront Crossings fee-in-lieu funds to produce 183 units (168 at 60% AMI or lower); councilors pressed staff on voucher compatibility, tenant relocation plans and financial risk and signaled consensus to have staff draft formal agreements.
City Manager Jeff Fruin told the Iowa City Council in a work session on April 21 that staff recommends using Riverfront Crossings fee-in-lieu dollars in a public–private partnership with Annex Group to build an Orchard Court apartment project that would deliver rent-capped units more quickly than land acquisition alone.
Fruin said the project’s estimated total cost is about $57,000,000 and that staff is proposing a $5,100,000 city loan secured by the property at a 1% interest rate. Under the structure described, the city would receive about $51,000 a year in interest and a projected balloon payment in year 16 of roughly $6,100,000; staff said the loan proceeds could be recycled into future affordable-housing work. "Annex has committed to accepting vouchers," Fruin said, and staff noted the federal LIHTC (4%) award and a roughly $650,000 loan from the Housing Trust Fund of Johnson County that carries a 30-year affordability requirement.
On unit mix and affordabili…
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