City offering grants for affordable housing

The City of Sisters is putting forth its first opportunity to access grant/loan funds to eligible agencies and private developers to aid in the construction of affordable housing for low- and moderate-income residents.

In addition to providing $300,000 of City funds to aid in the construction of the Ponderosa Heights apartments on Brooks Camp Road, the City established its affordable housing program to help ease the shortage of affordable housing within the city. Funds for this program are derived from a portion of the transient room tax charged on all hotel/motel/short-term rental stays, and a beginning allocation from the City.

Applicants who apply for the money must be (a) a housing authority, (b) a qualified nonprofit organization that constructs affordable housing, or (c) a for-profit developer of affordable housing for low- and moderate-income households. They must also meet additional requirements including the project must be an eligible qualified project and the application must be made on the City’s current program application.

The application forms will be available at Sisters City Hall or at http://www.ci.sisters.or.us by December 15.

Each application must be filed with the City no later than March 1, 2020, and must contain: the date of the application and the applicant’s name, address, contact information, and the signature of the applicant’s authorized representative; a description of the proposed project including the type of housing and proposed project location, a timeline for project completion, and any additional information to demonstrate that the proposed project will satisfy the eligibility requirements; the amount of program funds requested and the purposes for which they will be used; the project pro forma including identification of funding sources to be used in connection with the proposed project; and certification that the applicant is current on all City accounts.

All property taxes for the property identified in the application must be paid at the time of application. There may be other information requested by the administrator to enable the City to review the application and determine eligibility for the program funds.

For more information on this program, check the City website (Affordable Housing Program) or contact Cory Misley, city manager, at [email protected]