Rose Community Capital has secured a more than $16.1 million Section 221(d)4 Substantial Rehab loan for Fenway Manor, a 143-unit affordable housing project in Cleveland, Ohio.
Originally constructed in 1923 as a residential hotel, Fenway Manor was rehabbed in 1974 for low-income seniors by Beachwood, Ohio-based The Orlean Company. At the time of the conversion, the property received a project-based Section 8 contract covering all units.
The project is located in Cleveland’s University Circle district, home to the main campuses of the Cleveland Clinic, the Veteran’s Administration and University Hospitals, Case Western Reserve University, the Cleveland Institute of Art, the Cleveland Institute of Music, the Cleveland Art Museum, Severance Hall (home of the Cleveland Orchestra), the Cleveland Natural History Museum and the Cleveland Botanical Garden.
The concentrated presence of these institutions has spurred additional employment, research facilities and start-up businesses in the area, particularly in the bio-tech and engineering fields. In response to this growth, additional development of high-end apartments, condominiums, office space and retail has taken place in the district and could have easily displaced existing low-income seniors from the property.
The rehabilitation will include a new roof, windows and elevators; a new, secured storefront entrance; masonry tuckpointing and lintel repair/replacement; new MEP systems (including storm, sanitary and domestic hot- and cold-water risers); new WSHP HVAC for units’ heating and cooling; new handicap accessible common area bathrooms; new flooring and paint throughout all common areas; new fire pump and fire panel; and an emergency generator.
Individual apartments will be updated with new kitchens and bathrooms (including countertops, cabinets, appliances and plumbing fixtures); new unit flooring, paint and new doors.
To finance these improvements, The Orlean Company and Renewal Housing Associates secured a new HUD insured/GNMA-backed first mortgage, 4% Low-Income Housing and Historic Preservation Tax Credits, tax exempt bonds, and a HOME Loan from the City of Cleveland. The property also benefits from the City’s 15-year tax abatement that allows the property to prudently service approximately $2 million more in mortgage debt than otherwise possible.
