$10M upgrade planned for aging Portland affordable housing complex
Courtesy / Wingate Cos.
A Newton, Mass., real estate firm plans $10 million in renovations to Portland affordable housing development North Deering Gardens.
An affordable housing complex in Portland is about to get a $10 million renovation.
Newton, Mass.-based 246 Auburn Associates LLC, an affiliate of Wingate Cos., recently acquired North Deering Gardens at 246 Auburn St. for an undisclosed price.
The seller was Auburn Terrace LLC, who redeveloped the property in the late 1990s. That involved undertaking a substantial tax credit rehabilitation at the time, said Biria St. John, vice chairman at CBRE, who represented the seller in the deal.
Since then, he said, the seller “has reinvested a significant amount of capital and continued with the affordable tax credit program, while at the same time offering resident services to meet the overwhelming need for affordable housing in the Portland metro.”
St. John said Wingate will take over the asset and perform additional improvements while preserving affordability.
Wingate Cos. specializes in property management, investment, finance, consulting and sales throughout the U.S. Founded 60 years ago, it now manages more than 19,150 residential units in 19 states and has a focus on affordable housing, according to a news release.
North Deering Gardens is a 164-unit apartment complex consisting of one-, two- and three-bedroom townhouse apartments, each with direct entrance access. There are 17 two-story residential buildings and one central leasing office, which includes the property’s community amenities.
The complex is less than a half mile from Portland's Lyman Moore Middle School and near the Northgate Plaza shopping center.
Originally constructed in 1972, North Deering Gardens was re-developed in 1999 using Low Income Housing Tax Credits issued through Maine State Housing Authority.
While the 15-year compliance period expired in 2014, the existing affordability restrictions extend through 2029. Under the current restrictions, the property is required to rent 114 units to residents earning at or below 60% of area median income. Additionally, 33 units are restricted to residents whose incomes do not exceed 50% of AMI. As of today, there are no rent restrictions on the remaining 17 market-rate units.
Wingate plans to pursue a 4% Low Income Housing Tax Credit transaction with the goal of facilitating a comprehensive capital rehabilitation plan for the property at an estimated of cost of $10 million.
The capitalization will be accomplished with the use of federal low-income housing tax credit equity in conjunction with construction and subsequent permanent financing provided by the Maine State Housing Authority.
The rehabilitation will focus on items designed to ensure the long-term capital needs of the property, including exterior siding and trim, door replacement, wood deck replacement, amenity upgrades to the playground, upgrades to the laundry room, landscaping improvements, irrigation system and grading improvements, paving and interior upgrades.
Upon the completion of the rehabilitation, Wingate plans to convert the 17 market-rate units to affordable units, restricted at 60% of area median income.
“This work will preserve a large number of affordable apartments, in a part of our state that desperately needs them, for decades to come,” said Maine Housing Director Daniel Brenna.
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