The Virginian-Pilot
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Four South Hampton Roads development projects have been granted $16 million in federal stimulus money to help jump-start construction in the slow economy.
The work will translate into about 530 new or renovated housing units for low-to-moderate-income residents of Chesapeake, Virginia Beach and Portsmouth.
The money was released earlier this week in a tax credit swap, which traded the statewide tax credits developers have normally used to finance construction for $112 million in cash. Developers were having a hard time selling the tax credits because of a dwindling pool of investors, said Jim Chandler, director of tax credit programs for the Virginia Housing Development Authority.
"This will allow the developments to go forward," he said.
The four local community projects to receive funding include:
- Friendship Village in Virginia Beach - $3.5 million to help renovate 109 units.
- Harbor North in Chesapeake - $4.7 million to help renovate 240 units.
- Connie Lane in Virginia Beach - $3.5 million to help build 51 new units.
- Southside Gardens in Portsmouth - $4.3 million to help renovate 134 units.
In Portsmouth, developer Bob Margolis said he will use the money as part of a $14.3 million renovation of the aging Southside Gardens apartment complex on Seven th Street.
Margolis' company has a contract to buy the property. It began managing the complex last year.
"It's in terrible condition," he said. "This is a godsend for the residents there. They deserve to live a lot better."
As part of the purchase and renovations, the complex will be restricted entirely to low- or moderate-income residents for the next 30 years, Margolis said. He has planned roughly $40,000 in upgrades for each unit - basically a total overhaul - and also will replace mechanical systems in each building and the exterior siding, he said.
The project was the last of the statewide development proposals to be chosen the for funding.
Meghan Hoyer, (757) 446-2293, meghan.hoyer@pilotonline.com
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use of stimulas money
I wish every time Stimulus money was used they would say how many people would be hired as a result. Not using the funds to decrease unemployment during this economy is wrong. The ones who made this determination were local govt. officials, who are primarily what Republicans? Do whatever they can to not reduce the unemployment rate, then blame it on the Dems.
By the way I'm not a fan of the stimulus plan, the local govt's should at least use the money in a way that will best help the economy.
Just my opinion.
developer Bail out ?
wait a second, the City pays the developer for affordable housing and then the developer gets tax credit for bulding affordable housing, then the developer gets a bail out on top of that.
This is confusiing.
The Article shouldn't say Four local projects get stimulus money, it should say Four local Developers get Stimulus money.
Stimulus, Bull!
Why don't you call it what it is; i.e., another Government give-away program that will increase working Americans' tax burden?
what a joke
what is this going to stimulate....crack sales
Gov't interferes with
Gov't interferes with market, gov't distorts market. This isn't stimulus, this is handouts. The money will never come back to us. The residents should be required to assist in the construction (full force) if they are just sitting at home watching Judge Joe Brown eating gov't Cheetos. But I guess the gov't relies on people depending on it. The more we depend on it, the bigger it grows. The bigger it grows, the more powerful.
Commercial real estate is predicted to epic blow up. And on top of this, we will probably see a foreclosure wave as big as the earlier one. Heck, I'm not actually sure the USA can ever recover? Our entire economy is a ponzi scheme. If a corporation did what the US Gov't does, it would be in jail with Madoff.
Ethan buys houses
Ethan, we know you are buying houses and trying to keep the prices down by scaring people. Nice try, though.
The part that is not mentioned is that this is borrowed money.
It will have to be paid back by us the taxpayers not the low income that benefits from it. Trickle up economics don't work, just look at Michigan.
There you go!
Spending more money to help the welfare mob! Southside Gardens does need to be torn down ---- and turned into a parking lot. When you have people that pay $8 - $10 dollars a month in rent they don't give a toot about taking care of the property. The few that do are so outnumbered by those that don't is a shame. There is so much welfare fraud in these places it defies the imagination.