Town of Chapel Hill Bond Referendum Approved, including $15M for Affordable Housing

Chapel Hill voters approved a municipal bond referendum on November 5, 2024, with support from 73% of voters. The bonds will allow the Town to borrow up to $44 million in general obligation bonds, including $15 million for affordable housing. General obligation bonds are one of the most cost-effective ways for cities and towns to make major infrastructure investments.

"Chapel Hill residents have overwhelmingly reaffirmed their support for affordable housing by approving the recent affordable housing bond.  Our team is ready to move forward quickly to put the bond funding to good use addressing the many needs for more affordable housing in the community,” says Sarah Vinas, Director of Affordable Housing and Community Connections.   

The $15 million for affordable housing will support implementation of the Town’s Affordable Housing Plan & Investment Strategy that Council adopted in September 2023. That plan makes recommendations for the Town’s affordable housing work over the next five years, which it estimates will require $50 million to implement.  Full implementation of the Plan is estimated to support the development of as many as 900 new affordable homes and the preservation of as many as 400.

In spring 2024, Council discussed potential projects that the 2024 bond could support. The affordable housing funds could support several Town-initiated development and preservation projects on Town-owned land as well as partner projects.

In addition to the $15 million for affordable housing, the referendum includes the following bond orders and other potential projects:

·       $15 million for public facilities$7.5 million for streets and sidewalks  $4.5 million for parks and recreation

·       $2 million for greenwaysTown staff are currently designing the allocation process for the 2024 affordable housing bond. For more information, see the 2024 Town Bond Referendum webpage.

Town Releases Fiscal Year 2024 Affordable Housing Annual Report

The Town has released the Affordable Housing Annual Report, which highlights our key progress for Fiscal Year 2024 (July 1, 2023 – June 30, 2024). 

Highlights from the report include:

• Breaking ground on the Trinity Court public housing redevelopment.

• 1,000 affordable units in the project pipeline anticipated to be developed in the next 5 years. 

• Receipt of a $1.5M Community Project Funding award from Congresswomen Foushee’s office to support the Tanyard Branch Trace project. 

• Assisted 4 Town employees with securing housing closer to where they work through our Employee Housing Program. 

• Developed 6 affordable units and preserved 164 affordable units with support from the Town. 

To view an interactive version of the data in this report, go to the Affordable Housing Dashboard. 

Fiscal Year 2024 Annual Report Released

Fiscal Year 2024 Annual Report

This past year was one of growth and change for Affordable Housing and Community Connections. Together with our partners, our team achieved many key milestones to continue advancing the Town Council’s affordable housing and community connections goals. Highlights included:

• Unanimous approval by Council of our first-ever Comprehensive Affordable Housing Plan.

• Breaking ground on Trinity Court public housing redevelopment.

• Leveraging funding to support projects, including a $1.5M Community Project Funding award from Congresswoman Foushee's office.

• Enhancing our focus on public housing resident engagement and maintenance of our units, hosting  neighborhood Meet and Greets, completing major repair projects, and more.

• Continuing to lead programs and initiatives that reach the Town's under-engaged populations and meet vital community needs, such as the Summer Youth Employment Program, Cookies and Community, Peoples Academy, Human Services, and Food Distribution.

• Merging together our Public Housing and Affordable Housing & Community Connections departments into one cohesive team working towards a shared mission.

Thank you to all of the residents and community partners who contributed to our shared efforts to build an inclusive community where all residents have access to affordable housing and opportunities to thrive. 

To learn more about our work over the last year, check out our Annual Report.

Longleaf Trace Receives 9% LIHTC Award

The Longleaf Trace affordable housing community in Chapel Hill has received a 2024 Low-Income Housing Tax Credit award from the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency. The development team for the project is led by the Taft-Mills Group who is partnering with Community Home Trust to develop the 48-unit project serving seniors earning less than 60% of the Area Median Income.

The project is the first local project to receive approval using the Town’s Residential-Community Priority-Conditional Zoning District (R-CP-CZD), which offers an expedited development review process for residential projects that include at least 25% of units as affordable.  The Town Council approved the streamlined process in 2023, and it allowed the Longleaf project to adhere to the tight application timeline required for a 9% LIHTC application. 

The Town also allocated $1.01 million in affordable housing funding to the project, which will be leveraged by more than $11 million in tax credits. The developer anticipates starting construction by fall 2025 and completing the project by Winter 2027.

Town Breaks Ground on Trinity Court Redevelopment

The Town of Chapel Hill recently broke ground on the Trinity Court redevelopment project on June 3. A groundbreaking event was held at the project site, in collaboration with Community Housing Partners and Southway Builders. Chapel Hill Mayor Jess Anderson, Town Manager Chris Blue, Affordable Housing and Community Connections Director Sarah Viñas, partner representatives, and several dozen community members gathered to celebrate the achievement.

“In terms of our Complete Community goals and our vision, Trinity Court is the perfect example of it,” said Mayor Jess Anderson. “Having affordable housing right next to all these amenities people can walk and bike to, being able to be right next to a community center, the school, trails, greenways [and] downtown.”

Trinity Court is planned to have 54 affordable units that will serve households earning up to 80 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI), or about $84,700 for a family of four. Sustainable materials and energy efficient methods will also be considered when constructing the units.

Funding for Trinity Court includes almost $2.7 million in affordable housing from the Town and nearly $1 million from Orange County affordable housing funds. The project also received a 9% Low Income Housing Tax Credit worth more than $10 million.

Construction on the Trinity Court site is anticipated to begin this month, and the project is estimated to be completed in winter 2026.

For more information about the project, visit the Trinity Court Redevelopment page.

Director Meet & Greets Hosted in All 12 Public Housing Communities

Throughout the month of May, Affordable Housing and Community Connections staff are hosting Meet & Greets in all 12 of our public housing communities. These events are an opportunity for residents to meet our Director, Sarah Vinas, and enjoy a snow cone and informal social time with each other and Town staff. Hundreds of residents have attended of all ages. On behalf of our team, we want to thank everyone for coming out! We look forward to enjoying more opportunities to come together out in the community in the near future!

Council Approves $1.6 million in Funding to Support 76 Affordable Housing Units

On April 24, the Chapel Hill Town Council approved the allocation of $1,668,800 in affordable housing funding. The funding will support the development of 66 new affordable units and preservation of 10 affordable units in the community. About 20 percent of the funded units will serve households earning 30 percent or less of the Area Median Income (AMI). Funded projects include: 

• Community Home Trust for critical foundation repair on an affordable duplex unit

• EmPOWERment, Inc. for the acquisition of 8 Naturally Occurring Affordable Housing units on Davie Circle

• Habitat for Humanity for acquisition of a parcel from the Northside Neighborhood Land Bank to build 12 for-sale townhomes

• Residential Services Inc. (RSI) for the renovation of a single-family home into a 6-unit group home for intellectually and developmentally disabled adults

• Taft-Mills Group and Community Home Trust to support the construction of 48 affordable apartments for seniors

The approval of this funding plan brings the Town’s investment in affordable housing to about $22 million over the last 5 years. That funding is supporting the development of nearly 400 units and the preservation of about 235 units.

Council Approves 48-unit Affordable Housing Community on Legion Road through Expedited Review Process

In April 2024, the Chapel Hill Town Council unanimously expressed support for the Longleaf Trace affordable housing community. On April 17, the Town Council approved a conditional rezoning of the parcel located at 1708 and 1712 Legion Road and on April 24, the Council approved $950,000 in affordable housing funding for the project. The Taft-Mills Group is developing the project in partnership with the Community Home Trust. The project will include 48 affordable apartments for seniors earning less than 60 percent of the Area Median Income (AMI)—12 of those units will serve households earning 30 percent or less of AMI.

The project is applying for a 2024 Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) award, which could bring more than $10 million in funding to the project.  With that award, the Town’s funding commitment would represent less than 10 percent of project funding. Since 2022, the Town has achieved its goal of securing this competitive funding source every year and has developed a pipeline of LIHTC project applications planned for at least the next five years.

This is the first project to use the Town’s expedited review process for affordable housing, which Council approved in November 2023. The process offers a streamlined development review process for residential projects that include at least 25 percent of units as affordable.  The project went through the Town’s process in 4 months total,  a substantial reduction from the 18 months typically required for applicants to move through the Town’s development review process.

Learn More About the Town’s Affordable Housing Plan and Investment Strategy

Affordable Housing Plan Overview

The Town’s Affordable Housing Plan and Investment Strategy is estimated to require $50 million in funding over five years, which will support the development of at least 900 new affordable homes and the preservation of at least 400 affordable homes.

Check out the brief overview of the Plan which highlights the Plan’s goals, anticipated results, and resources needed for implementation.

The goals of the Plan include:

• Reducing barriers to building homes

• Expanding and preserving homeownership

• Expanding and preserving rental housing

• Increasing staff and funding capacity

The Town Council unanimously approved the Plan in September 2023. Staff have been working to incorporate the Plan recommendations into our affordable housing workplan.

Town Receives $1.5M Award for Tanyard Branch Trace Affordable Housing

The federal government recently awarded the Town of Chapel Hill $1.5 million to fund the Tanyard Branch Trace project (formerly Jay Street). The funding is awarded through the Community Project Funding program, which provides grants through a congressionally-directed application process to support a wide variety of projects, including affordable housing.

The Town is partnering with Community Home Trust and Taft-Mills Group to design, build, and manage the project on Town-owned land. Council approved the site plan in April 2022, which will include 48 affordable apartments. The project will house households that earn at or below 60% of the Area Median Income (AMI), or about $60,000 for a 4-person household.

Other funding sources include 9% Low-Income Housing Tax Credits from the North Carolina Housing Finance Agency as well as Town affordable housing funding.

The development team is working on securing final permits and expects to break ground in Summer 2024. The project will open in Winter 2026.

For more information, visit the Town’s project webpage.