Introducing Davidson’s Landing Apartment Homes – our newest workforce housing development located in Kansas City.
After three years of challenges – the COVID pandemic, supply chain disruptions, record inflation, interest rate hikes, capital market dislocations, investor skittishness, etc – we have successfully completed the construction and lease up (ahead of schedule and under budget) of this 115-unit workforce housing development.
Unfortunately, most affordable and workforce housing developers use “first cost” as a metric for evaluating the feasibility of a project. They focus on construction cost reductions in an effort to close sources/uses gaps for their deals. Lower construction cost normally means less energy efficiency.
My development team discovered that by spending a little more on carefully-selected components, we can increase energy efficiency and attract private capital to close our sources/uses gaps. By focusing on “sources” rather than “uses” of funds, we are able to make our projects pencil out, keeping them affordable AND energy-efficient.
From the piece:
“Local developers say efforts to combat climate change are valuable, but the new rules are costly, threatening their ability to help resolve the region’s housing shortage.”
SIPs and modular both have their place in the market. Indeed, at some point modular manufacturers will begin to use R28 SIPs instead of traditional R13 exterior wall construction.
“To maximize the 179D deduction on commercial buildings, taxpayers need to meet prevailing wage requirements. If met, the amount of the deduction increases five-fold, from $0.50–$1.00 when not met to $2.50–$5.00 per square foot when prevailing wage requirements are satisfied. Similarly for multifamily homes, the maximum §45L Credit quintuples from $500–$1,000 per residence to $2,500–$5,000 per home depending on qualification level. Single-family homes under the new IRA rules do not need to meet prevailing wage requirements to obtain the higher $2,500 to $5,000 45L credit.”
Johnston Farms Apartment Homes is a proposed 120-unit apartment community serving families in Rock Hill, South Carolina. The estimated cost of this project is $35 million. This workforce housing development project, which targets families earning 80% of area median income, is proposed to be financed with essential function bonds. Construction is planned for May 2023.
The following video gives an overview of this energy-efficient workforce housing development. Feel free to contact Jeff Carroll at tartanresidential@gmail.com with any questions you may have regarding this or any of Tartan Residential’s other energy-efficient workforce housing development opportunities.
In 2014 Tartan Residential began work on Buchanan’s Crossing Subdivision – A 40-unit duplex development serving families in Kansas City, Kansas. Phase 1 consisted of 16 units and was constructed with traditional wood-framed exterior walls and R-13 batt insulation. Phase 2 consisted of 8 units and was constructed with R-26 polyurethane-filled structural insulated panels. In all other respects, the first two phases were identical.
This side-by-side demonstration underscored the benefits of building with structural insulated panels. Although building with panels cost more than traditional stick-frame construction, we identified a long list of construction, operating and financial benefits associated with panelized construction.
Our design team took what we learned and engineered a 3-story garden apartment building using structural insulated wall panels. Davidson’s Landing, a 115-unit workforce housing development financed with tax-exempt bonds and located in Kansas City, Kansas is currently under construction utilizing this building system. We are currently about 70% complete, ahead of schedule and below budget. Our first units will be ready for occupancy in the next month or two.
A few weeks ago our team obtained a building permit to begin construction on Buchanan’s Crossing Phase 3, a 16-unit workforce housing development to be financed with tax-exempt bonds. Phase 3 will be constructed with R-18 graphite-infused polystyrene exterior wall panels. We plan to use high-efficiency water heaters and HVAC systems for this phase. And we plan to build one building with panels on one side of the duplex and lumber and fiberglass on the other side.
Our design team – which includes the Virginia Center for Housing Research and Mathis Consulting Company (principal Chris Mathis is an MIT-educated building performance specialist and an ASHRAE Fellow) – plans to create simulated living environments in these side-by-side units to observe and collect data on for one year. This one-of-a-kind comparison should highlight additional benefits of energy-efficient construction systems.
The following video gives and overview of this small, but exciting project. Feel free to contact Jeff Carroll at tartanresidential@gmail.com with any questions you may have regarding Tartan’s energy-efficient workforce housing development opportunities.
Dr. Philip Agee Assistant Professor of Building Construction at Virginia Tech discusses with Jeff Carroll and Doug Koch off-site vs. on-site construction, design, research, data collection and analysis.
Dr. Philip Agee Assistant Professor of Building Construction at Virginia Tech discusses with Jeff Carroll and Doug Koch off-site vs. on-site construction, design, research, data collection and analysis.
