OPAL acquires grant to purchase Lavender Hollow apartments

From OPAL  Community Land Trust

OPAL Community Land Trust has been awarded a grant of $1,504,729 from the Washington State Housing Trust Fund for the purchase and remodeling of the Lavender Hollow apartments. OPAL now begins the process of finalizing acquisition of the 19-year old development with 22 apartments on Enchanted Forest Road.

According to Lisa Byers, OPAL executive director, work is underway to complete the contract and other paperwork required to transfer the property’s ownership. The sale is expected to close in 2009. Remodeling would begin in 2010.

She notes, “After OPAL buys the apartments, the current property management firm, Ad West Realty Services, will continue to oversee day-to-day operations. There will be no change in tenant eligibility or rents.

“Jeanne Beck and Gabriel Olmsted have agreed to be project manager and construction supervisor for the remodel,” Byers adds. Jeanne was OPAL’s executive director from 1991 – 1994, when the 18-home Opal Commons neighborhood was constructed. Gabriel was OPAL’s project manager from 2002 – 2008, when OPAL built the Reddick offices and apartments in Eastsound, six homes at Lahari Ridge in Deer Harbor, two homes on Madrona Street, and designed the Wild Rose Meadow neighborhood. “They bring a wealth of knowledge and collegial work-style to the table.”

Wally Gudgell, general partner of the current corporation that owns the property, invited OPAL to purchase Lavender Hollow because he wanted the apartments to remain affordable and the property’s ownership to be in local hands. Gudgell conceived of the idea to build the apartments in the late 1980s and used Federal financing so that rents could be affordable for very-low-income households. Actual rents paid by tenants range from below $200 to just over $600 per month, making housing affordable for seniors on fixed incomes and young people starting out in life.

OPAL’s Vice President, Allen Smith, praised Gudgell. “We are grateful to Wally for his foresight in constructing the apartments and his commitment to assuring the apartments remain an island resource for years to come.”

The Housing Trust Fund gave grants to 35 of 53 applications in spring 2009, including OPAL’s. Over $65,209,000 will be granted or loaned statewide.

OPAL stands for “Of People and Land,” representing a commitment to protecting natural resources while providing permanently affordable homes for people who are vital to the Orcas Island community. Incorporated in 1989, OPAL now provides homes for 84 households on Orcas Island, and continues to accept applications from people who are not able to purchase a home in the traditional market. For more information, go to: www.opalclt.org.

For further information, call OPAL at (360) 376-3191.