OHCS selects five factory‑produced housing projects under HB 3145, announces technical assistance plan

Talia Kankravis, assistant director of homeownership programs, briefed the council on implementation of HB 3145 and announced the selection of five factory‑produced housing projects to share a $25 million Lyft set‑aside.

Kankravis summarized the bill and the advisory process: the law required a $25 million set‑aside to fund up to five factory‑produced housing projects and directed OHCS to contract with the Network for Oregon Affordable Housing (NOAH) to convene an advisory committee and develop technical assistance. Staff received 32 applications requesting about $165 million; applications covered 757 units and requested an average of $5 million each. The selected projects include rural and urban examples and a mix of rental and homeownership: Eastern Oregon Modular Developments (24 rentals), Alahi Timber Townhomes in Gresham (27 for‑sale homes), Luther Memorial Church project in Portland (6 homes colocated with services), Phoenix Commons (40 accessible homes for 55+ replacing fire‑loss housing), and Short Stack Hillside (20 permanently affordable units using volumetric mass timber).

Kankravis said staff set balancing criteria (geography, project type, manufacturer and sponsor diversity) and planned two tracks of technical assistance: cohort‑based TA for the five selected projects and generalized TA for the broader industry. She said all selected projects must still clear ORCA and NOFA financial requirements and that OHCS will keep an alternate list in case any selected projects cannot advance. Councilors welcomed the selections and asked questions about land ownership models and shared‑equity approaches for homeownership projects; Kankravis said Lyft funds can support shared equity, land trusts, co‑ops, or leasehold models where statutorily permitted and that three of the five projects are rental projects while others are homeownership.