D.C. locks in $98.5M financing for next Barry Farm project
By Ben Peters, Staff Reporter for the Washington Business Journal
Another piece of the long-running redevelopment of D.C.’s historic Barry Farm-Hillsdale neighborhood is set to begin in January.
The D.C. Housing Authority said Monday that the agency and nonprofit developer Preservation of Affordable Housing closed a $98.5 million financing package for the first phase of Hillsdale Flats.
The project will feature nine three-story buildings totaling 90 units in the 1200 block of Sumner Road SE. All 90 units will be available to residents earning 80 percent or less of the area median income, with 42 designated for former Barry Farm residents.
DCHA this month underwrote short and long-term tax-exempt bonds along with Low Income Housing Tax Credits to finance the project with help from partners JPMorgan Chase, Fannie Mae and National Equity Fund Inc. The Office of the Deputy Mayor for Planning and Economic Development also provided loans for predevelopment and infrastructure at the site, according to DCHA.
Hillsdale Flats will comprise seven one-bedroom units, 31 two-bedroom units, 33 three-bedroom units, 15 four-bedroom units and four five-bedroom units. Of the 31 two-bedroom apartments, nine will be “live-work units” for artists and entrepreneurs to take advantage of a “hybrid studio space” within the home, according to DCHFA.
“The Barry Farm-Hillsdale redevelopment is more than housing; it’s a catalyst for inclusive growth and long-term opportunity in Ward 8 and across the District,” Maia Shanklin Roberts, POAH vice president of development, said in a statement. “We are proud to advance a vision that promotes housing stability while creating shared economic benefits for the entire community.”