INDIANAPOLIS— A push to create more affordable housing is taking another step forward. In recent weeks, Mayor Joe Hogsett announced ten proposals were selected for funding through Vacant to Vibrant.
The City awarded $5.86 million to help support the creation of 49 homes for rental, homeownership, and lease-to-purchase opportunities.
In a release the mayor said, “The goal of Vacant to Vibrant is to transform vacant City-owned property into affordable housing that will enhance economic opportunity for Indianapolis families and strengthen neighborhood quality of life.“ "At a time when housing availability is limited across Indianapolis neighborhoods, our comprehensive strategy is to leverage every tool and resource to create more pathways for residents to access quality affordable housing. Vacant to Vibrant streamlines the development process by directly pairing property sales with local and federal funding. We look forward to working with our community development partners to turn the vision of Vacant to Vibrant into a reality.”
Flanner House, will be receiving $600,000 for their home ownership project. Flanner House helps support families in the Near Northwest.
"Especially in our neighborhood, it’s a neighborhood with a pretty bad record of disenfranchisement. In our sort of coverage area in Flanner House we’ve got a third of the properties are owned, a third are renters and they may be 2nd or 3rd or even 4th generation renters, and then a third of the available lots might be vacant. That’s a pretty interesting mix of how we’re using the land in the 46028 zip code. It made it worse as the pandemic kind of flew by prices went up, now we’re seeing mortgage rates go up to unattainable levels, and people are being priced out," said Brent Lyle, with Flanner House.
Flanner house will work with Volumod, a company that builds modular homes. Volumod has already started making an impact in the community when it comes to affordable housing.
"Being able to present a full embodied home within 21-24 days and bring it out to a property completely furnished, dry wall, insulation, plumbing, light fixtures, siding, roofing, to be able to impact the community in such a way it’s a huge impact," said Joe LeMark with Volumod.
Other neighborhoods that will be benefiting are Martindale-Brightwood and the Near East Side.
The cost of the home will depend on the neighborhood, but families making less than 80% of the area median income qualify.
2023 Vacant to Vibrant Program Awards
· Englewood Community Development Corporation’s Temple Avenue Townhomes & Exodus Refugee Affordable Housing was awarded $1,073,227 for the creation of 10 affordable units, six of which will be modular townhome units and four will be renovated in partnership with Exodus Refugee and Volumod.
· With $600,000, Flanner House homeownership project will partner with Volumod to develop six new modular homeownership units in 46208.
· Martindale Brightwood CDC’s Ralston Hill Phase One project received $937,113 to develop eight new construction townhomes. This project aligns with the Martindale Brightwood Education Zone (MBEZ) Housing Village blueprint, providing affordable housing options for families attending or working at local schools. Additionally, it aims to reduce vacancy within the Hillside Housing Tax Increment Financing (HOTIF) area, created in collaboration with DMD in 2021.
· Martindale Brightwood CDC in partnership with Brown Property Development partnership received $300,000 to construct two homeownership opportunities at 1967 Hovey & 1613 E. 20th Street.
· The Southeast Neighborhood Development Inc.'s submission will utilize $953,616 in ARPA funds to create six total affordable units, four rental townhome units in the Old Southside Neighborhood and two homeownership units in the Twin Aire Great Places neighborhoods, providing a mix of opportunities.
· The Westside Community Development Corporation’s Near West Horizon Project was awarded $300,000 to construct two affordable homeownership units on the near westside, contributing to the expansion of affordable housing options in the area.
· The Edna Martin Christian Center’s proposal received $263,590 to update three properties focused on affordable homeownership for households between 50% and 60% AMI. EMCC's wrap-around services will support these households, ensuring a holistic approach to affordable housing.
· The Indianapolis Neighborhood Housing Partnership’s Bungalow Pilot program will utilize $282,086 funds for the rehabilitation of two units of affordable homeownership for households below 80% AMI. This project will be focused on the development of bungalow homes, traditionally one story in height with a floor area under 1,000 square feet.
· INHP’s second project, Bridge to Homeownership, received $663,678 to create six units of lease-to-purchase housing across Marion County.
· Intend Indiana’s Affordable HomeMatters received $488,000 to produce four new affordable homeownership opportunities in the Riverside Neighborhood along the Udell St. corridor.
