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Home > BizTimes Daily > Archives > October 14, 2008
City plans more rent-to-own homes
Published October 14, 2008 - BizTimes Daily
The City of Milwaukee and the North Avenue Community Development Corp. announced today a proposal to expand affordable housing options in the Metcalfe Park/Washington Park neighborhood and add mixed-use development along West North Avenue in the Gateway Main Street District.
Under the proposal, the North Avenue Community Development Corp. would develop Avenue Homes, which would feature 20 single-family rent-to-own homes on city-owned lots in the vicinity of North 32nd Street and West Garfield Avenue. The plan also would include Avenue Lofts, a mixed-use project on privately-owned blighted sites at North 32nd Street and West North Avenue.
The Avenue Homes would offer families the opportunity to rent a three-bedroom home with a garage and all appliances included. After a successful rental period, the homes would be sold to the family at a price that results in a mortgage payment at or below their current rent payment.
The Avenue Lofts would bring 3,800 square feet of new neighborhood-serving retail in a three-story building and include four three-bedroom apartments affordably priced for families living in the area.
Renee Booker, president and chief executive officer of the North Avenue Community Development Corp., said families living in both developments will be offered guidance and counseling on becoming homeowners. He hopes to attract teachers, police officers and other professionals to buy in the neighborhood, as well.
"We’re responding to the foreclosure crisis by developing housing that can move more of our families towards responsible, affordable homeownership," Booker said. "By offering this opportunity to turn a dream into an affordable reality, we believe we’re building a stronger community that will work hard to keep our neighborhood strong."
Avenue Homes would be the second "rent-to-own" home ownership opportunity in Milwaukee. Metcalfe Park Homes, a City of Milwaukee partnership with Gorman & Company, offers 30 rent-to-own homes in the neighborhood. Both projects are based on a similar model in Cleveland. A recent study of the Cleveland model indicated that 90 percent of families that were part of the rent-to-own program eventually became the owners of their rental homes.
Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett said the Avenue Project would boost several "Stronger Neighborhoods" initiatives underway in the Metcalfe Park neighborhood, from the Main Street Milwaukee program to the Targeted Investment Neighborhood and new homes project in the surrounding residential area.
"We are working with strong partners like Renee Booker and the North Avenue Community Development Corporation to bring about real change in the lives of Metcalfe Park residents," Barrett said. "Anyone who drives down West North Avenue will see a number of new developments to serve the neighborhood."
"The Avenue Project represents a significant opportunity for the Gateway District - and North Avenue, as a whole - to take another important step forward," said Common Council President Willie Hines. "North Avenue CDC has put together a strategic plan that not only stimulates high-quality residential growth, but also opens the door for more single-family homes, which will stabilize certain neighborhoods behind the commercial corridor."
Predevelopment assistance for the Avenue Project was provided by Local Initiatives Support Corp. The project will also be assisted with a $5.5 million tax credit allocation from Wisconsin Housing & Economic Development Authority.
The Redevelopment Authority of the City of Milwaukee (RACM) will consider a land assembly proposal for the Avenue Project at its next meeting on Thursday, Oct. 16.
