||| FROM SAN JUAN COUNTY COMMUNICATIONS |||
On Tuesday January 25 the County Council agreed to award additional funding from the Home Fund to the Northern Heights apartments project bringing the County’s total financial commitment up to $1,112,300; the maximum allowed by the County’s policies. The County prioritizes preserving affordable rental housing at every opportunity across the islands.
The Northern Heights apartments, providing 12 one-bedroom year-round rentals, is a rare property in Eastsound that the County and OPAL Community Land Trust hope to preserve. The need for affordable rental housing on Orcas is acute.
OPAL entered into an agreement to purchase the property contingent upon getting grants and donations for the cost. OPAL’s goal is to keep the apartments as affordable year-round long- term rentals.
The funding for OPAL to purchase and renovate this property was proposed to come from three sources: The local San Juan County Home Fund, the Washington State Housing Trust Fund, and private donations. Last fall the County’s Home Fund ranked this as its highest priority for affordable housing and awarded a grant. Unfortunately, because of intense competition from around the state, the Housing Trust Fund did not fund the project.
But that is not the end of this story.
Many individuals have already generously donated or pledged funding to help purchase the apartments; however, additional funding is still needed. OPAL has until April 30, 2022 to complete their fundraising efforts, or else these long term rentals could potentially be lost forever.
Please consider donating to OPAL to help fully fund this project. More information can be found HERE.
The Northern Heights Apartments is the tenth project funded in part by the San Juan County Home Fund. To date the program has awarded $6,471,189.50 to constructing, acquiring, persevering, planning, and rehabilitating affordable housing on Lopez, Orcas and San Juan island.
For more information regarding the San Juan County Home Fund visit: https://www.sanjuanco.com/1595/San-Juan-County-Home-Fund
This is great, I wish we could somehow move the needle in the direction of the workers on the island.. we need all the rentals we can get! But I’m curious.. I know of several seniors and non working individuals, that are securing housing, but it seems in my reality, there are alot of the service class that don’t fit our current models of housing being offered. This is concerning because unless it’s subsidized somehow.. it’s just unattainable.
There must be tangible solutions..
Hopefully these will become more pet friendly? One of the units was empty for approximately four months waiting for non pet owner tenant in the last year and a half. Islanders love their pets. Perhaps a damage responsibility agreement along with deposits.
Seems a worthy cause; I hope the money can be raised. I believe right now, most of the apartments at Northern Heights are occupied by low income seniors – there may be a few service industry workers – but I don’t know of anyone younger than 50 or 60 who lives there.
Clyde Duke makes an important point – many service industry workers are paying way over half of their gross wages for rent. That is not sustainable for them to be able to stay here. Many do not have adequate affordable health insurance. The income disparity here is vast.
Not sure how this can be implemented to fairly include workers, but I know that even at Lavender Hollow, 16 or 17 of our units are subsidized, the rest not. One worker, a quiet single man, made just a little bit too much, even though he was paying full ‘note rate’ – and he had to move out! That apt sat empty for quite awhile. That seemed sad to me – to un-house a good, paying tenant – but i guess each funding/loaning entity has its own hard and fast rules and we are under Rural Housing guidelines and rules here.
As for the pet issue; those apartments at Northern Heights are TINY! Perhaps small pets only is the answer; and they may make exceptions. All dogs would need to be leashed at all times and house trained; cats litterbox trained and indoor only – all with proof of being spayed and neutered It can be in the lease.; especially if the pets are therapy or service animals. I believe that pets are therapy animals and that they save lives. But the tenants have a responsibility to take care of their animals.
We have a pet deposit at lavender Hollow. I think I may be the only one who actually paid that! Some animals here are not spayed or neutered, nor have cats been tested for feline HIV or leukemia. I wish that would be required – it should be – the spread of disease would lessen, since unneutered males tend to fight.
It would also depend on how management handles things and I can tell you that most managers are way overworked and underpaid.
Some years ago, plans were drawn for a second phase on the site of Northern Heights…I believe those plans, drawn up by local architect, Jack Jackson, were complete construction documents and may have been submitted to the County for building permits. Thus, acquisition of the existing 12 rental units includes the possibility of additional homes to address our island’s critical need for workforce housing.