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Glenbrook Place
Apple Valley, Minnesota

Glenbrook Place offers affordable, attractive new units for low- and moderate-income families.

In many suburban locations, especially rapidly growing suburbs, affordable housing for low- and moderate-income families is in short supply. The competition for appropriate sites may be intense, and new residents of market-rate housing may be reluctant to have affordable units built near their homes. These factors and others came into play in Dakota County, Minnesota, a third-ring Minneapolis suburb where the population increased 59 percent from 1980 to 1990.

Although the employment base in the area has also expanded rapidly, jobs tend to be in retail and other relatively low-paying sectors. At the same time, median rents in Dakota County are the highest in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area. The Dakota County Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) determined that there was a very strong need for attractive, affordable rental units for families and, in late 1991, began developing a project to meet those needs.

The HRA quickly established a limited partnership to develop Glenbrook Place and acquired an eight-acre site in Apple Valley with good access to transportation and services. However, assembling the necessary financing proved challenging, and it took two years to complete the development.

In addition to low-income housing tax credits, which were syndicated to a local corporate employer, the HRA brought together six other financing sources, including HOME funds from the Dakota County Consortium (for which the HRA is the lead agency) and loans from the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency (MHFA), the Family Housing Fund of Minneapolis and St. Paul, and the Federal Home Loan Bank. Tax increment financing was also used, and the city of Apple Valley provided Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) and local funds. The total development cost was approximately $3.5 million.

The completed development has 18 two-bedroom and 22 three-bedroom townhouse units with garages. The units range in size from 1,000 to 1,300 square feet at a density of approximately five per acre. The site is well landscaped and includes a tot lot and basketball courts. One of the units is occupied by an on-site caretaker who is able to direct residents to social service providers.

Rents range from $390 per month up to the allowable maximum under the tax credits; the average rent is $515 per month, making the units affordable to families with incomes between 30 and 60 percent of the area median. The average income of families currently residing at Glenbrook Place is $20,697, and 65 percent of these families are headed by a single parent.

The development of Glenbrook Place represents the addition of an important housing resource for low- and moderate-income families in Dakota County. There were no comparable rental units for this population when the project was built. Significantly, these units are likely to remain affordable well beyond the required 30 years dictated by the low-income housing tax credits because the Dakota County HRA has the option to purchase the development after the initial 15-year compliance period. Thus, Glenbrook Place is an example of how the involvement of a housing authority can help ensure long-term affordability and provide a permanent housing resource for the community.

Contact: Mark Ulfers, Dakota County Housing and Redevelopment Authority, 612/423-4800

Copyright 1997 - 1998 - 1999 - 2000
Affordable Housing and HOME
National Association of Housing and Redevelopment Officials (NAHRO)
630 Eye Street, NW
Washington, DC 20001-3736
Telephone: (202) 289-3500
Fax: (202) 289-4949