Affordable Housing Development

The County of Volusia, Department of Community Services, Division of Community Assistance, is soliciting proposals for loans to support the development of affordable, multi-family rental housing projects or permanent supportive housing (PSH). The projects must be located in the County of Volusia, excluding the incorporated limits of the cities of Daytona Beach and Deltona. The County has State Housing Initiatives Partnership (“SHIP”), HOME Investment Partnerships (“HOME”) and HOME Investment Partnerships – The American Rescue Plan Act (“HOME-ARP”) program funds available. This request for proposals (RFP) seeks to address affordable housing needs in Volusia County. A proposal may request funding in one or both sections listed below and may request all or a portion of the available funding. Both for-profit and not-for-profit developers are encouraged to participate. The available funding can be used as gap funding for developments utilizing other affordable housing funding sources, including but not limited to Rental Recovery Loan Program (RRLP), State Apartment Incentive Loan (SAIL), tax exempt bonds, non-competitive housing credits, competitive housing credits, and HOME-ARP from entities other than Volusia County. Eligible proposals requesting multi-family development funds must provide a minimum of 50 affordable rental units per project. Project proposals may contain more than 50 units and can include units that are not affordable housing as long as the minimum is met. All affordable units must be for households at or below 80% of the area median income level while meeting specific set-aside commitments indicated in this RFP. The maximum funding request per unit is $35,000 per unit. Public housing related projects, as defined below, may request up to $60,000 per unit. The additional funding allowance per unit for public housing related projects is due to their ability to reach the most vulnerable populations of Volusia County and unmet need. There is no minimum number of units required for proposals seeking funding for PSH. All PSH units must be for households that meet HOME-ARP specific requirements indicated in this RFP. The maximum funding request per unit for PSH is $75,000 per unit. The awards shall be structured in the form of 50-year deferred, forgivable loans with 0% interest. The loan awards will be contingent upon the applicant’s project being fully funded by all other sources being pursued. Any conditional awards will be considered null and void if the project does not have full funding in place within 120 days of the award from Volusia County. Volusia County, in its sole discretion, may choose to award funds to one applicant, multiple applicants, provide funding to none of the applicants, or request additional information or documentation prior to making an award. The approval of the eligible affordable housing project and authorization to enter into a commitment letter shall be approved by the Volusia County Council. The Volusia County Council shall also approve the written development agreement and related loan documents (“Contract”) for any eligible project that is awarded. Important Note: Any funds expended by the applicant prior to executing the written rental developer agreement and related loan documents will NOT be eligible for reimbursement. HOME-ARP Non-profit Capacity Building An additional $50,000 is available for activity funded through HOME-ARP. Eligible costs include salaries for new hires (wages and other employee compensation and benefits); costs related to employee training; staff development, equipment (computer software or programs to improve organizational processes), upgrades to materials and equipment and supplies; and contracts for technical assistance or for consultants with expertise related to the HOME-ARP qualifying populations. HOME-ARP Operating An additional $50,000 is available for activity funded through HOME-ARP. Eligible costs include reasonable and necessary costs of operating the non-profit organization which includes salaries, wages, and other employee compensation and benefits such as employee education, training, travel, rent, utilities, communication costs, taxes insurance, equipment materials and supplies. Expedited Permitting All awarded affordable housing proposals will receive expedited permitting if the project is located within unincorporated Volusia County. Impact Fee Waiver Request (County) This is a one-time request that will be submitted to county council for review and approval for affordable housing projects. There is no guarantee of the value or the approval of the request.