The city’s housing authority is moving forward with a “substantial rehabilitation” of George Crawford Manor, a 109-unit high-rise building for senior and disabled tenants, in order to modernize the building and boost accessibility and energy efficiency.
The board of the Housing Authority of New Haven (HANH) approved two resolutions in support of that rehabilitation project at its regular monthly meeting on Dec. 16, including a million-dollar predevelopment loan to the Glendower Group and official intent to issue $15 million in private bonds for the project, which is expected to cost $43 million in total.
The project will be financed with 4% Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, federal and state Historic Tax Credits, tax-exempt bond financing, and other public and private financing.
Housing authority Board Chair William Kilpatrick and commissioners Danya Keene, Elmer Rivera Bello, and Kevin Alvarez were all present at the Tuesday meeting, and all backed the two Crawford Manor-focused resolutions.
Crawford Manor, located at 90 Park St., is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and considered a historically significant property. It was designed by Paul Rudolph and its construction was completed in 1966.
“It’s a project that is really in need of modernization to bring it up to current standards,” Ed LaChance, vice president of development for the Glendower Group, said at the housing authority’s December meeting.
According to LaChance, Glendower still hasn’t decided what the best method for rehab is — “floor by floor, vertical stacks, etc.” It’s unclear whether tenants will have to be relocated. But if relocation is required, LaChance said, all related costs would be paid by Glendower from project budget funds.
At HANH’s Nov. 18 meeting, the board authorized the submission of a Rental Assistance Demonstration (RAD) application to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for the development project.
The RAD program, according to HUD, was founded as a way to address growing capital improvement needs for aging public housing buildings. It allows properties to convert to a long-term, project-based Section 8 platform, where Section 8 subsidies are tied to specific units rather than tenants. This provides stable funding for public housing agencies to repair aging properties.
According to HANH, conversion under RAD would allow Crawford Manor to move from a low-income public housing model to the long-term, project-based Section 8 model. The increased subsidy and cash flow would allow HANH and Glendower to obtain private financing, and therefore “leverage private and public financing for substantial rehabilitation consistent with historic preservation standards.”
HANH described submitting the RAD application for the Park Street property in November as “initiat[ing] steps toward securing long-term affordability, capital reinvestment, and historic preservation for the property.”
“The building is in need of modernization to address capital needs, improve
accessibility, and enhance energy efficiency while maintaining its architectural
integrity,” states the resolution approved by the housing authority’s board. The month before, in October, the board approved a contract with Nero Air Conditioning, Heating & Refrigeration to replace the Crawford Manor boiler for $189,496.96.
In compliance with RAD requirements, the housing authority reported in November that they conducted four meetings with Crawford Manor residents to inform them of the RAD conversion process, tenant protections, anticipated scope of work, and residents’ absolute right to return to Crawford Manor after the rehabilitation process.
According to LaChance, the application process will continue over the next six months. “We’re very confident that we can bring this plan to fruition based on our track record of success,” LaChance said in an email statement.
In the housing authority’s December meeting, the board first unanimously approved a predevelopment loan to the Glendower Group, HANH’s nonprofit development arm, for an amount not to exceed $1 million.
According to the housing authority, the necessary predevelopment work will include preparation of architectural, environmental, engineering, legal, and financing materials to secure Connecticut Housing Finance Authority/Department of Housing funding and state and Federal Historic Tax Credits. The loan would also support “financial closing,” which is what occurs when a property transfers from the housing authority to Glendower so that it can be redeveloped. It occurs once all the funds and approvals necessary for redevelopment are in place.
The source of the loan is Move To Work funds, and it is to be repaid at closing from “low-income housing tax credits, permanent financing, and other soft loans.”
“It will be repaid,” LaChance said to the board regarding the loan, “when we convert the project.”
The board then unanimously approved a resolution to declare official intent, known as an Inducement Resolution, to issue $15 million in private tax-exempt bonds — or around 30 percent of the total projected cost of $43 million for the rehabilitation project. In order to qualify for 4% Low-Income Housing Tax Credits, at least 25 percent of the total cost of a project must be financed with tax-exempt private activity bonds.
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requires an inducement resolution stating that “Glendower may use tax-exempt bond proceeds to reimburse qualifying expenditures paid prior to bond issuance,” according to the housing authority. The bonds will be issued through the Connecticut Housing Finance Authority or another issuer and are expected to be repaid from “project revenues, tax credit equity, and/or other financing sources at construction closing.”
According to HANH President Shenae Draughn, the housing authority plans to spend a year conducting architectural work and then begin construction in 2027. Construction is anticipated to take 18 to 24 months.
One balcony at Crawford Manor.
Glendower development VP LaChance: “We’re very confident that we can bring this plan to fruition.” Credit: Dereen Shirnekhi photo