State commerce department awards $17.5 million in infrastructure funding to boost affordable housing developments

Housing Hope is planning to develop a complex to house the Edmonds School District’s homeless students on the 1.8-acre, district-owned Scriber Baseball field, located along 58th Avenue West and adjacent to Cedar Valley Community School in Lynnwood.

Affordable housing projects in Edmonds and Lynnwood are among 26 statewide that are receiving $17.5 million to fund utility connection fees and the improvements needed to connect them to municipal water and sewer systems, the Washington State Department of Commerce announced Tuesday.

The funds will lower the effective cost of development by about $8,000 for each housing unit, the announcement said.

Artist’s conception of the 52-unit housing project planned for the vacant field adjacent to Edmonds Lutheran Church on 236th Street Southwest near Highway 99.

The City of Lynnwood will receive $1,440,817 for the Housing Hope project at Scriber Field,with 52 affordable housing units for Edmonds School District families.. And the City of Edmonds will be awarded $1,361,011 for the Housing Hope project at the Edmonds Lutheran Church Field, with 52 affordable units

“The communities receiving grant funds have already made affordable housing a priority with local tax levies. This program supports and helps accelerate that work at a time when affordable housing projects throughout the state are facing significant cost increases,” said State Commerce Director Lisa Brown.

The Connecting Housing to Infrastructure program (CHIP) awards prioritized projects that include home ownership units as part of a community land trust, offering housing that is affordable in perpetuity.

Commerce awarded funding to projects in 11 counties.  They were selected from 44 applications received in round two, including those not funded in round one, and representing over $40 million in application requests.

Applications open soon for a third round of grants to be awarded this summer. More information is available on the CHIP webpage.

 

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