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This article was written by WTOP’s news partner InsideNoVa.com and republished with permission. Sign up for InsideNoVa.com’s free email subscription today.
The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday approved a $3 million Housing Blueprint loan to finance the acquisition of new affordable housing near Fort Belvoir in the Mount Vernon District.
Funds will be used to support the purchase and renovation of existing “market affordable” housing at The Landings II Fort Belvoir, meaning the units are generally affordable to earning 100 percent of the area median income less. The community will transition to a “committed affordable” available to households earning no more than 60 percent of the area median income, Fairfax County said in a news release.
“The Richmond Highway corridor is a growing center of opportunity, and affordable housing is a fundamental cornerstone to achieving our communitywide vision,” said Mount Vernon Supervisor Dan Storck. “We want to be sure that our housing opportunities enable our middle- and low-income workers to do more than just ‘make a living’ in the Mount Vernon District – we want them to be able to make a home here as well.”
The Landings II consists of 76 apartments originally built in 1964. The property was purchased in February by AHC, Inc., a not-for-profit, community-based housing development organization. The agency has a two-phased plan to rehabilitate and transition the complex over five years, followed by “substantial renovations” in about 10 years to maintain long-term affordability through the possible use of low-income housing tax credits.
The initial rehabilitation of the nearly 60-year-old property at Landings II will include sidewalk repair, tree trimming, storm drain work, construction of a new entrance sign, structural repairs, windowpane work, replacing certain gas furnaces and water heaters and other work within the units. The initial repairs are expected to be completed within the first year.
The Landings II joins the Landings I Mount Vernon Apartments which were also acquired by AHC to rehabilitate and transition current market affordable housing to being affordable to low- and moderate-income households.
Both Landings I and Landings II Apartments will implement a phased conversion to committed affordable housing through natural attrition, the county said. That means as tenants move out of the property, they will be replaced by residents that meet the new affordability criteria at 60 percent AMI. Any households currently residing at the property who meet the affordability criteria will be eligible to remain in place.
