Housing commission snubs Springfield

Southwest Missouri was not left out entirely; two proposals were approved in Branson, while Joplin and Carthage each received approval for one project. However, from a statewide perspective, Missouri’s third-largest metropolitan area looks to have come up short.

The seven-county area from Springfield to Joplin to Branson contains more than half a million people but received approval for just four projects; Kansas City and its surrounding counties totaling 1.2 million people received approval for 10 projects while St. Louis and its surrounding counties totaling 2 million people received nine. (See box.)

The tax-supported housing commission provides affordable housing development funding and tax credits for developers.

Four projects in Greene County were submitted for the program, though none were selected.

Springfield-based Affordable Homes Development Inc. submitted a proposal for the $4.5 million Strasbourg Estates west of Springfield, a development of 32 three-bedroom, single-family homes, as well as a proposal for a project in Hollister.

“(I) can’t remember the last time that Greene County didn’t get a project,” said Affordable Homes Development President Marie Carmichael, adding that she was “extremely disappointed and quite surprised” that her company’s proposal was denied.

Affordable Homes Development has a history of MHDC projects, which usually bodes well for developers. Carmichael said the company has received approval for at least one project in each of the past eight years.

“In the application, there’s a place where you have to list every project you’ve done, because the more you’ve done in the past, the less likely you are to screw it up,” she said.

“We’re already thinking about where we’re going to go next year and how we can make (those projects) work.”

The proposals for Affordable Homes’ two local projects requested about $2 million in MHDC funds and state and federal tax credits. Carmichael said that if the company can’t put together a bond package, the Strasbourg project won’t proceed.

Two Springfield businessmen on the commission – The Signature Bank President Rob Fulp and Loren Cook Co. President Loren Cook II.

Fulp declined to comment, noting that commission members are referring questions to the commission’s interim Executive Director Pete Ramsel, who could not be reached by press time.

Other projects in Springfield were proposed by out-of-state developers Wishcamper Group III of Maine and CP3 Developers of Bucyrus, Kan.

Springfield developer Carlson Gardner Inc., run by Mayor Tom Carlson and Mark Gardner, received approval for the Joplin project.

Affordable housing needs

MHDC spokesman David Bryan said the commission has approved eight Springfield proposals since 2001, including Franciscan Villas and the Walnut Street Apartments, which were completed last year. The commission’s review is largely guided by an area’s need for low-income housing.

“Each developer has to give an indication that the local community is involved, such as a letter from the mayor, city council, etc.,” he said.

“We also look for any activity from the housing authority that might show there’s a waiting list for any housing subsidies as an indication of how many people are looking for housing – it’s a need and demand process,” Bryan added.

The need is apparent in Springfield, at least, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Census estimates for 2004 show that nearly 16 percent of people living inside the city limits live below the federal poverty level – $18,850 for a family of four.

That’s a higher percentage than in Kansas City, where five projects were approved.

“We have a tremendous need for additional affordable housing here in Springfield,” said Tom Barnett, executive director of the Springfield Housing Authority. “We have about 1,500 families waiting for assistance from our agency – that’s about as many as we serve in the community – so there’s a tremendous need.”

Members of the SHA, along with County Commissioner Harold Bengsch, voiced their support for the Strasbourg project at a Springfield public hearing before MHDC’s vote.

Mike Rankin, Branson’s economic development director, said the two approved Branson projects – Country Ridge and Lost Tree West – will meet a need for affordable housing, especially after construction of new developments such as Branson Landing.

“One of the things we’ve been anxious to (do) for several years now is to balance the development. You’ve got the retail and entertainment side growing very well, but we had hoped that we could pick up on the housing market,” Rankin said.

“This is one of those projects that really hits a home run for the types of housing that we need.”

The two Branson projects, comprising 68 family units, will receive a total of more than $1.1 million in assistance, including tax credits and MHDC funds.

Finding funds

Funding for 2006 held basically steady – the 37 commission-approved projects will receive about $20 million in federal and MHDC loans along with another $20 million in state and federal rental housing tax credits.

But that money does not stretch as far as it did last year, when 40 projects received funding. MHDC’s Bryan said that’s due to difficulties in the construction industry caused by Hurricane Katrina.

“We were confronted with the problem many other companies are facing – the cost of building materials has skyrocketed,” he said.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the Springfield/Branson/Joplin region recorded a poverty rate of 12 percent, higher than the rates of either the Kansas City/St. Joseph or the St. Louis regions:

12%

Springfield region

9.8%

Kansas City region

9.5%

St. Louis region

Note: All figures are from 2000, the last year for which complete data were available.

MHDC-approved local projects

Branson

Country Ridge, built by HCW LLC, is receiving $1.1 million in funding for 60 new units, which will lease for approximately $400 a month.

Lost Tree West by New Beginnings Development is receiving $75,000 for8 new units leasing for $335.

Joplin

Zahn, a rehab project by Carlson Gardner Inc., will create 46 new family units, leasing at $325 to $395 a month. The project is getting $1.2 million in grants and tax credits.

Carthage

Harry S. Truman Community Development Corp. will create three new single-family homes, leasing for $475. The project is getting $400,000 in funding.

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