Public Mixed-Income Housing Development

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The City of Kingston will launch a new nonprofit public enterprise to spur the development of publicly-owned affordable and mixed-income housing.

The City of Kingston developed this model in partnership with the Center for Public Enterprise, a national nonprofit that supports public agencies on development programs in the housing sector. The nonprofit will provide construction loans from a revolving loan fund to help projects through the construction phase. The model does not rely on the low-income housing tax credit program, vouchers, or any other scarce state and federal grants to be successful.

Originally piloted in Montgomery County, Maryland in 2021, this approach to mixed-income housing development is gaining momentum nationwide. It has been successfully implemented in Atlanta and there are ongoing initiatives in Raleigh, Syracuse,, Chicago, Boston, and the state of Michigan. For Kingston, this approach will leverage the development capacity of the private and non-profit sectors while creating long-term community benefits.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much will this new non-profit invest in a particular project? It is expected that the non-profit's low-interest loans will cover up to 25% of the development cost of a housing development.

How will the revolving loan fund be funded? Will public money be used? At this time, a funding source for the revolving loan fund has not been identified. There is no current proposal to use public money to capitalize the revolving loan fund.

Exactly how many units will be required to be affordable, and how do we define ‘affordable?’ In exchange for becoming a partner in the development, the non-profit will require that a housing development dedicate 20% of its units as affordable for Kingstonians earning less than 50% of Area Median Income (AMI). The non-profit will negotiate the affordability level on an additional 10% of the units, requiring that they be affordable to households making between 60 and 80% AMI. That means 30% of the total units will be dedicated as affordable, while the remaining 70% will rent for market rate.

How long will the affordable units be dedicated as affordable? The affordable units will be affordable permanently.

Will the non-profit do anything else besides loan? The non-profit is expected to take an active role in its investments to ensure that its development partners are taking advantage of any other possible affordable housing incentives. The non-profit will also identify opportunities to leverage publicly-owned land. The non-profit will remain a partner in its properties long-term, to ensure permanent affordability.

How will the non-profit be structured and will there be accountability measures? To enable permanent affordability, the non-profit is structured as a 501(c)(3) non-profit. It will be financially and operationally independent from the City of Kingston with its own board to allow the non-profit to operate flexibly. Its appointed board will hold public meetings and it is expected that the non-profit will issue reports to the Kingston Common Council annually.

How will rents be adjusted each for the market-rate units? Some other communities that pursued this model have chosen to stabilize the rent on market rate units by limiting the amount of any rent increases (for example, to 2.5% annually). As this model is developed and established in Kingston, this policy can similarly be explored and solidified at a programmatic level.

Would tenants of the buildings have special tenant rights, such as good cause eviction? Some communities have created specific leasing and tenant protections that specifically apply to this program and are incorporated in the program standards. As this model is developed and established in Kingston, this policy can similarly be explored and solidified at a programmatic level.

The City of Kingston will launch a new nonprofit public enterprise to spur the development of publicly-owned affordable and mixed-income housing.

The City of Kingston developed this model in partnership with the Center for Public Enterprise, a national nonprofit that supports public agencies on development programs in the housing sector. The nonprofit will provide construction loans from a revolving loan fund to help projects through the construction phase. The model does not rely on the low-income housing tax credit program, vouchers, or any other scarce state and federal grants to be successful.

Originally piloted in Montgomery County, Maryland in 2021, this approach to mixed-income housing development is gaining momentum nationwide. It has been successfully implemented in Atlanta and there are ongoing initiatives in Raleigh, Syracuse,, Chicago, Boston, and the state of Michigan. For Kingston, this approach will leverage the development capacity of the private and non-profit sectors while creating long-term community benefits.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much will this new non-profit invest in a particular project? It is expected that the non-profit's low-interest loans will cover up to 25% of the development cost of a housing development.

How will the revolving loan fund be funded? Will public money be used? At this time, a funding source for the revolving loan fund has not been identified. There is no current proposal to use public money to capitalize the revolving loan fund.

Exactly how many units will be required to be affordable, and how do we define ‘affordable?’ In exchange for becoming a partner in the development, the non-profit will require that a housing development dedicate 20% of its units as affordable for Kingstonians earning less than 50% of Area Median Income (AMI). The non-profit will negotiate the affordability level on an additional 10% of the units, requiring that they be affordable to households making between 60 and 80% AMI. That means 30% of the total units will be dedicated as affordable, while the remaining 70% will rent for market rate.

How long will the affordable units be dedicated as affordable? The affordable units will be affordable permanently.

Will the non-profit do anything else besides loan? The non-profit is expected to take an active role in its investments to ensure that its development partners are taking advantage of any other possible affordable housing incentives. The non-profit will also identify opportunities to leverage publicly-owned land. The non-profit will remain a partner in its properties long-term, to ensure permanent affordability.

How will the non-profit be structured and will there be accountability measures? To enable permanent affordability, the non-profit is structured as a 501(c)(3) non-profit. It will be financially and operationally independent from the City of Kingston with its own board to allow the non-profit to operate flexibly. Its appointed board will hold public meetings and it is expected that the non-profit will issue reports to the Kingston Common Council annually.

How will rents be adjusted each for the market-rate units? Some other communities that pursued this model have chosen to stabilize the rent on market rate units by limiting the amount of any rent increases (for example, to 2.5% annually). As this model is developed and established in Kingston, this policy can similarly be explored and solidified at a programmatic level.

Would tenants of the buildings have special tenant rights, such as good cause eviction? Some communities have created specific leasing and tenant protections that specifically apply to this program and are incorporated in the program standards. As this model is developed and established in Kingston, this policy can similarly be explored and solidified at a programmatic level.

Have questions about the public mixed-income development model? Ask them here.

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  • Share Why are you creating a new organization instead of using existing - have you explored KLDC or partnering with KHA as a vehicle to deliver the housing units? on Facebook Share Why are you creating a new organization instead of using existing - have you explored KLDC or partnering with KHA as a vehicle to deliver the housing units? on Twitter Share Why are you creating a new organization instead of using existing - have you explored KLDC or partnering with KHA as a vehicle to deliver the housing units? on Linkedin Email Why are you creating a new organization instead of using existing - have you explored KLDC or partnering with KHA as a vehicle to deliver the housing units? link

    Why are you creating a new organization instead of using existing - have you explored KLDC or partnering with KHA as a vehicle to deliver the housing units?

    Jennifer Bloom asked 12 days ago

    Great question! To select the proper vehicle, we looked at a range of factors: authority to receive tax exempt PILOTs, staff capacity, experience with development and land stewardship, etc. As part of this, we did look into whether it would make sense to use an existing organization, including but not limited to the Kingston Local Development Corporation or the Kingston Housing Authority, but there are conflicts between the strategic areas of these organizations and those of this potential non-profit. For example, the KLDC is a public authority and has only the powers expressly granted to it by its Certificate of Incorporation specific to business loans, the expansion of industrial and commercial activity, etc.

    Other jurisdictions have chosen different governance options based on the landscape of existing organizations, their powers, and their capacity. In Kingston's case, it made sense to create a new non-profit that would be a subsidiary of the City itself. However, this does not mean that these other organizations wouldn't be involved. They could donate surplus land or be directly involved in the housing development itself as the development partner. 

    -Bartek

Page last updated: 07 Aug 2025, 05:46 PM