MANSFIELD — A Columbus-based affordable housing developer is one step closer to building 70 new homes on scattered sites across Mansfield.
Woda Cooper Companies recently cleared the first hurdle in obtaining more than $31 million worth of funding from the Ohio Housing Finance Agency for its Temple Greene project.
The Ohio Housing Finance Agency gave preliminary approval to Woda Cooper’s funding application last month, inviting the company to submit a final application by Dec. 15.
Receiving preliminary approval and being invited to submit a final application is a typical part of the agency’s process.
The project that would bring 70 new three-bedroom units to Mansfield if all goes according to plan. Some may be duplexes or even triplexes, while others will be single-family homes.
“Woda Cooper has developed more than 100 affordable communities in Ohio. We are thrilled to be developing in Mansfield and look forward to being part of such a wonderful community,” said Jill Fazekas, Woda Cooper’s director of public relations.
“We appreciate this opportunity to work with the local leaders to bring new single-family housing to the area.”
The units would be built on lots throughout the city, which are owned by the Richland County Land Bank.
The land bank board approved a letter of intent in June to sell approximately 63 parcels to Woda Cooper, contingent on the developer receiving OHFA funds for the project.
While the final sites have not been finalized, they will likely be concentrated on Benton Street, Boughton Avenue, Bowman Street, Cedar Street, Clairmont Avenue, Crystal Springs Street, West Fifth Street, East First Street, Weldon Avenue, Willis Avenue and Wood Street, per a purchase agreement between Woda Cooper and the land bank.
Jeff Woda, the company’s founder and CEO, told Richland Source his company builds a quality product with long-term ownership in mind.
“We’re going to be the same people that pitch it to a community that also property manage it. So if you have an issue down the road, you’re calling the same people. It’s not absentee landlords. It’s those that invested in the community originally,” he said.
If Woda Cooper secures a LIHTC credit and builds its proposed housing in Mansfield, Woda said the company would employ an onsite service tech in town for light maintenance and rely on local contractors for more complex repairs like plumbing, HVAC and electrical.
A regional manager would oversee the Mansfield service tech and those in surrounding Woda Cooper-owned developments, he added.
Woda emphasized that his company would not be an absentee landlord.
“We have an email address and phone numbers with 24-hour answering,” he said. “Our site manager and service tech are both equipped with cell phones.”
Housing would be affordable and income restricted
Developers like Woda Cooper apply for OHFA funding to offset the cost of developing rental housing. In exchange, they are required to keep rents affordable for a certain period of time — typically a minimum of 15 years.
But “affordable” isn’t a relative term dictated by the developer or market conditions. It’s based on the income of people living where the housing is built.
Units would be restricted to residents earning between 50 and 70 percent of the area’s median income, according to the company’s proposal.
As with any new development, Woda Cooper’s plans would need to be approved by city government and abide by local zoning regulations.
How does OHFA funding work?
Fazekas said the organization expects to receive the full amount it requested from OHFA — a “capital stack” that includes loan, bond, grant funds and a 4-percent tax credit.
The total project cost is estimated to be around $32 million, Fazekas said.
Woda Cooper applied for a capital stack worth about $38 million in funding from OHFA, though part of that amount would include tax credits – which are typically sold by developers for less than their face value.
The developer applied for a 4-percent low-income housing tax credit (with a projected value of around $12.5 million) to help fund Temple Greene.
Woda Cooper Companies is one of several developers whose business model relies heavily on these Low Income Housing Tax Credits. LIHTC was created as part of the Tax Reform Act of 1986 and signed into law by then-President Ronald Reagan.
Martin estimated that Woda Cooper’s credits will likely be sold for around 55 cents on the dollar.
“Which means, we’re awarding them $12.5 million in credits, they will only receive $6.875 million in equity (cash) from the tax credits to develop the property,” Martin explained.
The company’s funding application lists Marble Cliff Capital as an investor, PCI Design Group Inc. as the architect of record and Woda Management & Real Estate LLC as the property management firm.
