WILMINGTON — Work continued on The Flats, an affordable housing project in Wilmington, this winter with the Woodland Trustees officially breaking ground on the fifth phase of redevelopment of a rising affordable housing development on Wilmington’s west side last week.
The Flats are amid a $110 million seven-phase redevelopment of 454 units, with the recent phase slated to create 53 apartment units for seniors in the neighborhood. The project is a reimagining of a 1900s community off Bayard Avenue first built by industrialist William Bancroft as workforce housing. Led by the Todmorden Foundation, a partner organization of the Woodlawn Trustees, the project now is entering its 10th year, and has built 280 apartment units and townhomes at below-market rates.
The fifth phase, which broke ground Jan. 5, will include 53 one- and two-bedroom apartments designed for seniors on the block of Fourth and Ferris streets. Backed by United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Section 202 funding, this part of The Flats is maintained for residents 62 years and older, with rents kept at 30% of their income.
“This piece is unique because it’s just for seniors, and the HUD funding provides direct rental assistance, so nobody is paying more than 30% of their income. That commitment is for 20 years, so it’s a game-changer for seniors who are primarily living on Social Security,” said Richard Przywara, president and CEO of both Todmorden and Woodlawn.
The fifth phase will also include a part-time medical use, including a nursing station, though the service provider has yet to be determined.
The Flats project is funded through a combination of federal, state, city and donated funds, though the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program contributes a large portion, The LIHTC program provides tax credits for projects designed to have at least 20% of units occupied by tenants with an income of 50% area median income. The Flats had used this program for at least the first three phases of the project.
The Delaware State Housing Authority had provided $5 million in funding through the state’s Housing Development Fund as well as the COVID-19 Gap Funding program. Other public and private donations have awarded the project $2.95 million.
The ambitious project still plans to be completed in 2030, with rents ranging between $850 for some of the older units that have yet to be rehabilitated to $1,300 for the larger units that are newly built. But with the tax credit, a tenant can pay as little as $450 a month.
“If you own a piece of real estate in Wilmington, it’s expensive. But there’s people and organizations that are behind this project that are committed to making sure affordable housing has to be here. If you want teacher aides and cooks and those making only $20 an hour, they have to have a place to live nearby,” Przywara told the Delaware Business Times.
This year, the Woodlawn Trustees plans to renovate 20 vacant units and put another 100 units on the market in the next 15 months. The Flats does not keep a waiting list, and advertises through the state housing website as well as traditional methods.
In some of his final public comments as mayor of Wilmington, Mike Purzycki said he was optimistic about the city’s future, and pointed to The Flats as a superior example of that. The neighborhood was built before World War I as workforce housing for those who worked at Bancroft Mill, and in a sense, Purzycki said, it was returning to its roots.
“This is a true game changer in terms of job creation, economic development and addressing the need for quality affordable housing while bringing about overall neighborhood improvement,” Purzycki said. “My thanks to Richard Przywara and our friends at the Todmorden Foundation, as well as all of the project partners that are making this new vision of The Flats a reality.”
In a later interview with the Delaware Business Times, Przywara thanked Purzycki for his partnership in the project as well as affordable housing as a whole.
“He took $20 million of federal funding and put it into affordable housing, and he waived permit fees for it. The point was to make it as inexpensive as possible,” he said. “I’m very hopeful that with Gov.-elect (Matt) Meyer and New Castle County Executive Marcus Henry, who have said affordable housing is a priority, it’s really going to be attended to on many levels.”
