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Commission discusses senior-housing options, feasibility costs and inviting Alaska Housing staff
Summary
Commission members raised a senior-housing funding and feasibility discussion, noting a 120-person wait list for market-rate units in Kenai, potential $300,000 feasibility study costs, and the plan to invite Alaska Housing Finance Corporation staff for a briefing.
Commission members used the July 9 meeting to discuss senior-housing capacity and state grant opportunities, flagging local wait lists and the high cost of development feasibility work.
A commissioner who recently attended the Alaska Commission on Aging strategic planning session described a new Alaska Housing grant program aimed at encouraging more senior housing. She said Kenai has about 120 people on a wait list for market-rate senior housing and noted the city already has roughly 40 units targeting seniors. “Feasibility studies run at least $300,000 for just that study,” the commissioner said, and cautioned that communities must be prepared to include middle- to lower-income seniors to score well for certain state grant programs.
Members discussed potential partners, including the KeyMap Peninsula Housing Initiative and private investment options that might reduce the need for the city to float bonds. The commissioner proposed inviting Jim McCall, identified in the meeting as a housing relations officer for the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation, to brief the commission either in person or by Zoom about available programs, scoring criteria, and investor interest.
Commissioners also asked about tax implications of donated property and whether market rents would allow projects to be self-sustaining; one member noted a two-bedroom waterfront unit in the market study rents for under $1,300, and another estimated construction costs could mean rents near $2,500 would be required to make a $20 million project financially viable.
No formal motion to pursue a feasibility study or an application to the state grant program was recorded in the meeting; commissioners agreed to consider outreach to Alaska Housing as a next step.
