Sioux Center is moving ahead with support for a potential affordable housing project on the city’s northeast side.
Speaking at the city council meeting on December 1st, Assistant City Manager Dennis Dokter laid out the application process the city had to go through to become a “Thriving Community”, a designation that will give developers a boost in applying for tax credits to build low-income housing.
City projects that are currently in the works are one of the reasons Sioux Center was given the designation, according to Dokter.
After receiving the designation, the city asked developers to submit proposals for potential housing that would be eligible for that tax credit. After submissions by five different developers, the city chose one close to home.
Dokter also told the council that the city is working ahead of deadlines to help make Newbury’s application as competitive as possible. Newbury plans to submit by early March.
To help them prepare for that application, the City Council plans a December 23rd public hearing will take place to consider rezoning the land to R-3, and a January 21st public hearing to consider granting Newbury an option to purchase the property—an option required for the tax credit application.
If Newbury doesn’t receive the tax credit next summer, the option would expire, and the land would stay with the city.
