Clark United Methodist Church has opened six new affordable homes on its property off Phillips Street that will help six families find a new place to call home that leaves them income they can use for more of their needs.
The Clark UMC Barnes-funded project, faced several hurdles to get to completion, and Mayor Freddie O’Connell used it as an example of a project that could have moved faster. To that end, the mayor has instituted several reforms aimed at streamlining affordable housing projects so that delays like the ones that impacted Clark UMC should be less likely for future affordable housing developers:
- Metro now offers priority plans and permits review for affordable housing projects.
- Affordable housing developers who are participating in an income-restricted affordable housing program, like the Barnes Fund, can request affordability certification by contacting the Housing Division.
- Metro recently established an Affordable Housing Permit, which flags all affordable housing projects that have been certified by the Housing Division. This makes it much easier for Metro departments to identify which projects should receive priority review.
- Planning has created these permits for all projects certified since 2022.
- The Housing Division is working with Metro departments to revise the legislation authorizing the priority review process to better define what ‘expedited’ means.
Clark UMC received $400,000 from the Barnes Fund to construct the six homes and improve the infrastructure along Phillips St. In the nearly 11 years of the Barnes Fund, nearly $110 million has been awarded, leading to the development and preservation of more than 4,700 homes.
