By Adrian Skabelund | Arizona Daily Sun
The Flagstaff City Council moved forward with efforts to use $5 million in bond money to support affordable housing last week.
The effort comes after voters approved the affordable housing bond last year, and after months of work on the part of city staff and the housing commission to develop a process for how to disperse the funds.
“There’s nobody else in Arizona, under our laws, doing this type of thing with general obligation bonds,” said Sarah Darr, the city housing director, during a discussion of the program last month. “We’re the first; there is no cookbook.”
The money would be available to developers that apply for it, and it ensures a project meets the eligibility criteria, including having a minimum of 10% of units be designated affordable for 30 years.
Before being forwarded to Council, applications from developers would then be reviewed by city housing staff, a ranking committee made up of commission members and staff.
