Bailey Community Center Redevelopment Plan Moves Forward

Image: Proposed southern elevation view from the CAHP plan for redevelopment of the Bailey Community Center structure

City Council voted unanimously tonight to have City Planning staff work with the Capital Area Housing Partnership (CAHP) to move forward with their plan for the Bailey Community Center as quickly as possible, in the hopes of meeting CAHP’s desire to submit this October for federal funding to support the plan. Financing for the estimated $8.6 million restoration and redevelopment project will be sought from federal tax credits for low-income housing, tax credits for historic preservation, and some more conventional types of development financing.

The plan is for a multi-use building that would include office space for CAHP, a childcare center, community-use space, and apartments for low-income seniors (over age 55). There might be a commercial tenant on the first floor as well. The plan includes demolition of the newer single-story addition to the building and replacement of that with a three-story addition, matched to the height of the old school building. The important historic features of the old school would be preserved. The green space would continue to be park land maintained by the City. The part of the property with the buildings on it would be leased to CAHP in a 45-year lease agreement.

Tonight at Council, CAHP’s Treasurer Jacob Horner presented CAHP's proposal, including outlining the expected partners, plans for the building, plans for funding, etc. (See CAHP's current proposal here.) CAHP's plan has general support from the Bailey neighborhood, as Chris Root previously reported for ELi.

Rents for the low-income senior housing are estimated to be about $570/month for a 1-bedroom unit and $660/month for a 2-bedroom unit. Rentals would be restricted to persons 55 and over who earn 60% or less of the area median income for their household size. Horner speculated that would be an income level of about $25,000-$28,000/year. The plan currently is for 19 one-bedroom and 7 two-bedroom apartments. (Note: After we went to press, Horner provided the actual limits accoding to HUD: $27,660 for a one-person houshold, $31,620 for a two-person, and $35,580 for a three-person.)

Pete Potterpin from PK Development Group, a for-profit developer, spoke briefly to Council as to his company's role in the expected project. Horner explained that CAHP is seeking this partnership because PK Development has the development experience required by the federal funding application.

There are a great number of approvals that will need to happen quickly if CAHP is to make the October 1, 2015, deadline for submission of an LIHTC/Historic Tax Credit application, including site plan approval, zoning approvals, approval of a PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) agreement, market surveys that are required by the state, approval of a lease agreement with the City, and loan approvals. Ideally CAHP wants to start construction by April 1, 2016, with occupancy beginning around October 1, 2017.

In response to a question from Mayor Nathan Triplett about what exactly CAHP was seeking from Council at this point, Horner replied that CAHP was looking to get “a warm, fuzzy feeling” from Council, to signal that it made sense to push a lot of resources into trying to get this project moving quickly.

Previously Council had voted to use a “strategic doing” process to discuss the future of the Bailey Community Center and had discussed possibly putting out a Request for Proposals (RFP) to solicit ideas about possible uses of the building. At tonight’s meeting, Council and the City staff felt the proposal from CAHP was worth moving forward on and was in keeping with the interests expressed by community members in public forums on the center’s future. They will therefore not put out a general RFP on the community center at this time.

Councilmember Kathy Boyle said the project fit “so many things we’ve been looking for in this city and that neighborhood,” including "affordable senior housing." Councilmember Ruth Beier said she doubted an RFP could lead to a better proposal than this one. Mayor Pro Tem Diane Goddeeris said she would support extra meetings of Council if that’s what would be required to get this project moving at the speed required.

Councilmember Susan Woods also thought it was a good solution. She said that she believed “you have to close a door to open another one” and that by her voting to close the building, she had “opened it to this” proposal. Triplett noted that there were many steps that would have to be managed before October and also expressed support for the proposal.

In public comment, which came after Council’s discussion and decision to move forward on the CAHP plan, Bailey resident Charles Hoogstraten supported Council’s decision. (Hoogstraten had been a leader of the Bailey parents' working group, which tried to stop closure of daycare at Bailey, and he and others have been critical of the way City staff and certain Council members handled that group's attempts to save the daycare.) He noted that those involved with CAHP have “a great deal of credibility in the community” and said that a similar type of project in Durand, known as Sycamore House, which also converted a school to senior housing, has been very positive for that community.

Hoogstraten did express concern about the City losing control of the building, saying he thought that that was “the wrong decision.” He also said that he did not think the proposal made up for “what has been lost and is continuing to be lost,” but he felt that given the majority of Council’s decision to close the Bailey daycare, this was the best way forward.

UPDATE, June 3, 2015, 1:20 pm: CAHP provided an updated rendering after we published this article, so we changed out the old image for the new one. At 3:50 pm we also updated the figures for the household income limits. Our thanks to Jacob Horner of CAHP for his assistance.

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