Tamarack Village to offer affordable housing

The first housing in Sisters with income-based rent will open its doors to residents in mid-September.

The people behind the creation of Tamarack Village Apartments, 555 N. Larch Ave., celebrated an open house including neighbors, members of the Central Oregon Regional Housing Authority (CORHA) and city and state officials on Wednesday, August 20.

Amidst many accolades and sighs of relief, the theme at Wednesday's gathering was warm appreciation for the opportunity to help neighbors who might have it a little rough.

"The families that come here are not always in the easiest of times," said Cyndy Cook, director of CORHA. "Our mission is fostering dignity through affordable housing."

Describing Deschutes County as one of the fastest-growing counties in the United States, County Commissioner Tom DeWolf spoke of the challenge to keep housing livable and affordable.

"Two of my main partners in this task have been Habitat for Humanity and CORHA," DeWolf said. "While everybody else is talking about it, they're out doing it. One of my problems with being a Republican is I tend to take my entire philosophy from George Bailey in 'It's a Wonderful Life,' but that's not always the same with other Republicans. I think of how Bailey Bank and Loans wouldn't loan to some places because they wanted to give to some individuals and families who really needed help."

Twenty-three of the 33 two- and three-bedroom apartments, renting from $300 and up, have already been assigned to renters, apartment managers said.

Rents are based on income and are set according to state regulations. The 10 remaining apartments must be rented for $520 to $640 to people with a median income between $22,740 for one person, and up to $40,320 for a household of seven.

The apartment community includes a resident center with a computer workstation, an outside play structure. apartments feature a washer and dryer, private porch entries and double wall construction.

The number of residents in need of affordable housing in Sisters is significant and projected to increase, according to CORHA reports. Of the 397 households in Sisters in 2000, approximately 100 or 24.9 percent lived in housing that was not affordable given their incomes, CORHA reports. Of these households, the majority (93 percent) had annual incomes under $35,000, the report states. CORHA projects that number to increase to 139 in 2003 and 198 in 2008.

Sisters' population totaled 959 in 2000 and is projected to increase to 1,345 in 2003 and 1,923 in 2008, according to the report.

A group of volunteers called Sisters Area Affordable Housing Solutions (SAAHS) approached CORHA for help after an aged local housing complex called "The Pines" closed in November of 1998 and 24 families lost their homes. After years of meetings, CORHA proposed Tamarack Village as the solution, Cook said.

Construction began last December after CORHA obtained state funding through federal tax credits and an approximately $1.2 million construction loan from Bank of the Cascades.

"This project is here because it was community-led," said Bill Willitts, a resident who worked with SAAHS. "It was driven largely by the displacement in The Pines. Many families were forced to leave this community and many to leave one of the finest school districts in the nation.

"Tamarack Village is a place of hope, a place of safety for kids, a place where adults and children can learn and grow, a place where single moms can come and hopefully learn and grow and move on to a better place." Willitts said. "There are balconies which overlook the park, a play area and most of all, a place for kids to be kids."