REHABS AND RENOVATIONS RENOVATION SPOTLIGHT: SUSTAINABILITY TAKES CENTER STAGE AT GAINESVILLE’S MIDTOWN VILLAGES G ainesville Housing Authority (GHA) and Collaborative Housing Solutions have completed the $25 million redevelopment of Midtown Villages, a 200-unit public hous-ing site in Gainesville, Georgia. The project is managed by Columbia Residential. Midtown Villages comprises 54 buildings on six separate properties located at various sites throughout the city. The redevelopment proj-ect received Low Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program equity and was certified under The National Green Building Standard (NGBS). Decatur, Georgia-based consulting firm SK Collaborative participated in the sustainability upgrades to the properties and completed two years of inspections and performance testing of the development, a project that SK Collab -orative Principal Abe Kruger calls “one of the more complex and unique affordable housing projects in the state.” According to Richelle Patton, Collaborative Housing Solutions founder, the project was unique not just in its disjointed overall foot-print, but in how it was financed. “This redevelopment includes six differ -ent sites that are all originally public housing sites,” Patton says. “We’re the first project in Georgia to combine National Housing Trust Fund dollars (NHTF) and LIHTCs.” The NHTF is a federal program funded through the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and administered through the Georgia Department of Commu-nity Affairs (DCA). As a part of the funding requirements for NHFT, LIHTC and Section 8, all units are income-restricted. The restrictions range from less than 59 percent of the area me-dian income (AMI), with some residents quali-fying at up to 70 to 80 percent AMI. The buildings are made of concrete masonry units, with some dating back to 1951. Patton said the renovation updated everything from the electric service and flooring to windows Midtown Villages’ Community Building. and roofs. “We’re trying to change the face of what people may think public housing looks like, by rebranding and showing how benefi -cial and attractive affordable housing can be,” Patton says. Now that NGBS certification is required, inspections are taking place while the build-ing is under construction. “Those mid-con -struction inspections are worth their weight in gold because we have an opportunity to give them feedback,” Bauman says. “If any issues are identified, it’s much easier to address them mid-construction rather than waiting until af-ter the final inspection.” Completing the inspections, especially with the onset of COVID-19, was difficult because residents had to be moved out — then back into their homes. “It was a logistical night -mare, especially with 54 buildings,” Bauman says. “Working with the team, we finally made it happen by the end of May.” Sustaining a Team Approach Keeping Cool and Comfortable The final construction costs totaled $24.9 million for everything, including a new com-munity and maintenance building and site work. This averaged to about $124,620 per unit in rehab costs. Air conditioning was added to the buildings at a cost of $2.7 million or $13,500 per unit. GHA Executive Director Beth Brown says the new HVAC systems have led to a significant reduction in utility costs. SK Multifamily Program Manager Joe Bau -man says that duct and air sealing were critical to the addition of the air conditioning system, adding that the DCA’s Qualified Allocation Plan requires a 20 percent reduction in duct and envelope leakage. “We measure the duct leakage and the envelope leakage before the renovation even starts, then we measure at the final inspection to verify the improvements,” Bauman says. In addition to renovating the residential units, Midtown Villages built new mainte-nance and community buildings that will soon feature solar panels. The community center is called the Melrose Art and Activity Center (the ‘MAC’) and is displaying art from local and national artists. There are plans for art classes for younger and older residents post-COVID, as well as an oral history project for former and existing resi-dents. “We’re collaborating with the surrounding community in Vision 2030, a program of the Greater Hall County Chamber of Commerce that spearheads initiatives to improve the quality of life in the area, including engaging residents with public art in the Gainesville and Hall County communities,” says Patton. “Our goal for Midtown Villages was to preserve yet upgrade. We are called upon to honor the community spirit established by the residents over the years, to try to be good neighbors, and to show that we are making a positive contribution to the Gainesville com-munity.” — Lynn Peisner From left, Butler/Athens Street Apartments, Melrose Homes Apartments and Summit Street apartments are all part of the Midtown Villages project, which comprises 54 buildings on six separate properties located throughout the city of Gainesville, Ga. Gainesville Housing Authority and Collaborative Housing Solutions just completed a $25 million renovation of Midtown Villages. 10 | Southeast Multifamily & Affordable Housing Business | May/June 2021 www.REBusinessOnline.com