A project to replace the Heritage Oaks senior apartment complex is on hold indefinitely after it ranked poorly in preliminary scoring for federal tax credits, the head of the Denton Housing Authority said Wednesday.
The public housing agency hoped to redevelop the site at 2501 N. Bell Ave. with new tax-credit apartments for seniors, but the project ranked far behind competitors in the Dallas-Fort Worth region in initial scoring, Shirley Hensley said.
The Denton Housing Authority board met Tuesday and decided not to pursue the project this year, she said.
That means residents of Heritage Oaks won't have to move anytime soon. The housing authority owns and manages the complex, built in 1979 for low-income seniors.
"We're hoping that they stay where they are," Hensley said.
The Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs oversees the state's housing tax credit program, which allows developers to offset some federal tax liability in exchange for building affordable rental housing. A final decision on 2012 credit allocations is expected in July.
Applying is a two-phase process, starting with a "pre-application" that allows applicants to score themselves according to 24 program standards.
Once they see how they compare with other applicants in their region, applicants can decide whether to take on the "far larger investment" of a full application, said Gordon Anderson, a spokesman for the state housing department.
Officials have worked to ensure more tax-credit properties are placed in areas with public transportation, higher-performing schools and employment centers, Anderson said.
"This is an extremely competitive process," he said. "A difference of two or three points can make the difference."
Hensley said she believes the Denton project ranked poorly because of its location. The area median income is too low according to the department's scoring standards, which she said encourage construction of affordable housing in higher-income neighborhoods.
The standards aren't expected to change anytime soon, Hensley said. The housing authority will keep in touch with Dallas-based Carleton Development Ltd., hired in September to handle the tax credit application, about applying for future credits, she said.
"We'll just have to see if anything changes" in the scoring criteria, Hensley said. "If we have a better opportunity to score higher, Carleton will submit another application for it."
LOWELL BROWN can be reached 940-566-6882. His e-mail address is lmbrown@dentonrc.com .
