An odd collection of LoDo residents – a brewery president, a downtown developer, a lawyer and a church – have joined forces to pay for some of the units in a low-income housing project near Coors Field.
Set to open in November, the 23-unit apartment building at 26th and Larimer streets is termed “transformational” housing for formerly homeless families who cannot afford the current price of rental units.
They will pay a discounted rent, about $500 for a two- or three-bedroom apartment, with part of the rent going into savings for a future down payment on a house.
Once the idea of splitting the building’s rent was hatched, the project seemed to fall into place, organizers said. Community members heard about the fundraising drive to pay off the building and came up with a unique way of getting involved.
“We’d been looking at a variety of ways of getting homeless families back to self-sufficiency,” said Mike Durkin, president of Mile High United Way. “Paul Franke, who’s on our board, hit upon the idea of transformational housing where a homeless family coming out of transitional housing has one more stop before entering full-market housing rates.”
Durkin said the group has secured some federal funding and other ways to help match families’ savings to get them into their own home.
Developer Charlie Woolley of the St. Charles Town Co. owned a vacant lot next to the Benjamin Moore Lofts he renovated at Broadway and Walnut Street. He donated the land, valued at about $200,000, then helped the project through the permit process.
US Bank donated $50,000 to the project, the city’s Housing and Neighborhood Development Services kicked in $210,000, and the state’s Division of Housing kicked in another $230,000. Coup led with the sale of nearly $3.2 million in low-income housing tax credits, the $5 million project suddenly was only about $1 million short.
Board member Franke and LoDo resident Susan Kiely then came up with the idea of raising the balance by sponsoring units for $60,000, Durkin said. Kiely and her husband, Leo, CEO of Molson Coors Brewing Co., kicked in the first $60,000, then offered to match any money donated by Coors employees for a second unit.
Ben Lewis, an employee at United Way, persuaded his congregation at Park Hill United Methodist Church to sponsor a unit. He’s in the process of persuading other churches to follow suit.
Jerry Arca, president of the LoDo Neighborhood Association, and his wife, Betty, held three fundraisers for LoDo residents, who have pitched in $53,000 so far.
“We’re all very fortunate to live down here, but we felt the need to give something back,” said Arca, who has lived in LoDo for more than 10 years. “This project was perfect. We hosted some little parties, and people just stepped up. Twenty-one people have contributed, so we’re thinking now we might be able to sponsor two units.”
Staff writer Mike McPhee can be reached at 303-820-1409 or mmcphee@denverpost.com.
