GREELEY — Several times a week people walk in off the street to Leianne Romero’s office and ask for help. Their house burned down. They lost their job. Their rent went up, and they were evicted.
Despite Romero’s status as executive director of the Greeley Habitat for Humanity — which builds affordable housing for the needy — the best advice she can offer them is to call the Greeley 211 line.
“We just see the families that are having the rents increase — on a weekly or daily basis — that are getting evicted,” Romero said. “So they’re looking for alternatives.”
There’s not much help to give right now because Habitat’s remaining five plots of land are booked and the organization doesn’t have additional land to plan for more homes.
Romero said her agency needs to work on procuring land to get it ready for building, but Habitat can’t find affordable lots.
For 10 to 15 years, Habitat has been working on filling a 60-home subdivision in Greeley, but the last of those houses will be completed next year.
By June 30, 2016, Habitat will build the final five houses on Habitat Lane. Families have been chosen for those homes.
One of the biggest challenges is finding land that will fit into the program. Families served by Habitat often are one-car households and need to be close to city amenities such as bus lines, grocery stores and schools.
To be approved for the Habitat program, a family must show need, heads of the household must have held their jobs for at least a year and they have to be willing to sign a 25- to 30-year mortgage. Habitat also offers a mortgage payment that equals no more than 30 percent of the household income.
That’s what makes Habitat different from other affordable housing — it makes homeowners, not renters.
In its 28-year history with Greeley, Habitat has built almost 110 homes in Weld County.
Tom Teixeira, executive director of the Greeley/Weld County Housing Authorities, said it’s not just Habitat running into a problem finding land. People want to build affordable housing, but it’s hard to find land that is also affordable.
Tap fees, building permits, zoning changes and many other things go into getting a lot ready for affordable housing, and once that piece of land’s cost hits a certain point, builders either back out or start looking at building something else on the land. That’s why Greeley is seeing so many apartments flood the market.
The city of Greeley offers help with land costs through the Greeley Urban Renewal Authority.
But city officials are noticing the same thing — in this economy, land is hard to come by.
“It’s the same sort of thing that we’ve noticed across the board in development,” said Becky Safarik, assistant city manager. “There are fewer and fewer parcels.”
In the past, the city, through the urban renewal authority, has donated land to Habitat or sold it at a discount.
“Habitat and GURA tend to pick up the pieces that nobody else wants,” Safarik said.
Through the city’s Neighborhood Stabilization Program in 2010-12, the city bought foreclosed homes in the housing slump and rehabbed them for resale. Safarik said the city made about one-quarter of the 36 total rehabbed homes available to Habitat. Romero said her organization rehabbed about 11 houses during the slump with the city’s help.
“Now, it’s more about picking up those remnant pieces that are properties in bad shape,” Safarik said. “But there just haven’t been many lately that we’ve picked up.”
For the city, a lack of empty lots is good. “I think it’s healthy that we’re not seeing vacant lots,” she said. “I think vacant lots are expensive to maintain and they don’t really contribute positively to neighborhoods.”
Safarik said they’re all going to have to get a little more creative as far as finding land for Habitat.
Romero said Habitat has been searching for potential parcels but needs the community’s help.
She said that as a religious organization, she trusts God will provide the land, but community support also is helpful.
“The biggest thing is getting the word out,” she said. “A lot of people see there’s a huge need. Lower-income people who are in our community — they’re our servers, our janitors, our health care workers. They are the hands and feet of our community.”
