In a first-time move for Seattle-based Great Expectations, the for-profit developer will convert the existing, vacated Sagebrook Senior Living Center in Bellevue into affordable housing.
According to Ben Maritz, principal of Great Expectation, the project will result in 108 units under the new name Crossroads Apartments. It will cost approximately 40% less than building from the ground up and should take about six months to complete. In the face of high interest rates and construction costs, the company has been actively pursuing properties for this type of conversion.
Great Expectations partnered with AOF/Pacific Affordable Housing Corp., a California-based nonprofit that supports development and preservation of affordable housing, to purchase the property. The Amazon Housing Equity Fund invested $11 million in the project, while the Washington State Housing Finance Commission provided another $13.1 million in tax-exempt financing through its recycled bond volume cap program. This is among the first projects in Washington to use Amazon loan funds alongside the recycled bond volume cap program, a funding tool for affordable housing developers to reuse tax-exempt bonds for property tax exemption purposes.
Providing affordable housing in a community where it is needed most, near jobs, amenities and transit, Crossroads Apartments will offer a mix of studio, one- and two-bedroom units ranging from 350 to 800 square feet. Most of the apartments will be available to those earning less than 60% of the area median income, while the remainder will be for those making less than 80% of the area median income. As part of a conversion project, the apartments will be available quite a bit faster than new construction, creating much-needed housing for our region.
This post was based on information found on Puget Sound Business Journal. Photo credit: Sagebrook Senior Living.
