[Archived] Virginia Housing Development Authority Awards $10 Million Low Income Tax Credits for Construction of Housing Units at Alexandria’s The Station at Potomac Yard

City Press Release


	For Immediate Release	For More Information, Contact
	May 18, 2007 PIO# 121-07/rdo	Steve Mason, Director of Communications, at 703.838.4300 Raynard Owens, Communications Officer, at 703.838.4300

Virginia Housing Development Authority Awards
$10 Million Low Income Tax Credits
for Construction of Housing Units at Alexandria’s The Station at Potomac Yard

The Virginia Housing Development Authority (VHDA) has awarded low income housing tax credits to assist in funding a major portion of the construction of The Station at Potomac Yard, a project that includes affordable and workforce rental housing. The Station at the Potomac Yard is part of an innovative mixed-use building that will include 64 apartment units above a new City fire station and a small retail space within Landbay G of the 165-acre Potomac Yard redevelopment site. The tax credits from the Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program will provide approximately $10 million in equity for the project.

The Station at Potomac Yard is being built through a unique public-private collaboration that includes the City, the Alexandria Housing Development Corporation (AHDC), and Potomac Yard Development, LLC (PYD), a private entity. PYD, a joint venture comprised of Pulte Homes and Centex Homes, donated the parcel of land for the mixed use project, as well as $6 million for the fire station and $6 million for the affordable housing.

“The tax credit award is the last critical element needed for the development of this project,” said Mildrilyn Davis, Director of the City’s Office of Housing. “This funding will enable us to proceed with an innovative project that will provide much-needed affordable housing for Alexandria residents and workers.”

“The award of tax credits will ensure the success of the project,” said Daniel R. Abramson, President of the Alexandria Housing Development Corporation. “The project will serve as both a model for new affordable housing as well as for future collaborations between municipalities, private developers, and not-for-profit affordable housing developers.”

The Low Income Housing Tax Credit program is a federal program that was developed in the mid-1980s to provide an incentive for private investment in affordable rental housing production and preservation. In Virginia, the program is administered by the VHDA, the state’s housing finance agency. Once a year, developers are invited to submit applications for affordable housing project proposals that are reviewed and ranked by the VHDA. Projects are scored based on a variety of criteria, including readiness, local support, level of affordability, provision of family-sized units, developer experience, economic feasibility, and special amenities or features, such as enhanced energy efficiency, building sustainability, and accessibility. In return for credits, projects remain affordable for 30 years.

For more information, call Helen McIlvaine, Deputy Director of City’s Office of Housing, at 703-838-4990.

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