State, federal and private funding has now been secured for two major redevelopment initiatives in Norwalk.
State Sen. Bob Duff, D-Norwalk, and Gov. Dannel P. Malloy made the announcement.
Low-income housing tax credits, which were created in 1986, are responsible for most of the private-sector investment in affordable housing ”” perhaps 90 percent nationally ”” and that equation plays out in Norwalk, as well, with the two projects reaping a combined $2.73 million in funding based on equity provided by the credits.
The tax credits are designed to be more attractive than tax deductions ”” and thus nudge investors ”” as they provide a dollar-for-dollar reduction in a taxpayer”™s federal income tax, while traditional tax deductions provide a reduction in taxable income.
Details of the two Norwalk projects include:
The Trinity Washington Village Phase One Ltd Partnership plans call for new construction on two vacant parcels in the South Norwalk neighborhood. The project is the initial phase of a larger multiphase redevelopment effort that will replace the oldest public housing in the state with a new, 273-unit, mixed-income community. In this phase, 58 units are targeted for households with incomes below 60 percent of the area median income, plus 22 market-rate units. Funding includes low-income housing tax credits, $9.86 million in state Department of Housing funds and a $2.8 million TD Bank mortgage.
POKO IWSR Developers L.L.C.”™s plans for Wall Street Place, Phase I, Norwalk call for a new mid-rise, mixed-use building with 36 apartments and 60,000 square feet of commercial and retail space on the first floor. The approved plan includes 850 parking spaces. Wall Street Place apartments will be for households earning up to 60 percent of the area median income. Besides low-income housing tax credits, funding includes $3.5 million in DOH funds and a $3.4 million CITI Bank First Mortgage.
Both projects competed successfully in a recent funding round for the federal “9 Percent Low Income Housing Tax Credits.” The Connecticut Housing Finance Authority administers the federal tax incentive program. Backed by the government, the credits serve as equity for developers to develop low- or moderate-income housing through the allocation of federal tax credits that may be sold to corporations or investor groups to raise capital for a project. Washington Village secured $1.89 million in this manner and Wall Street Place $864,000.
