Housing on Merit and Standard Communities have a unique approach to public-private partnerships. Through their collaboration with numerous public agencies to create, preserve, and improve workforce housing nationwide, Standard and HOM seek out affordable housing locations where they can enhance both the physical property and the quality of life for residents.
Many of Standard and HOM’s properties are in densely populated urban centers, affording them the opportunity to transform communities far larger than an apartment complex. Housing on Merit and Standard Communities have partnered to co-develop and preserve 1,876 multifamily affordable housing units across California and in Washington, DC, and have successfully managed the closing of over $249 million in debt financing with institutional lenders for affordable housing projects.
Recently, a successful and influential public-private partnership in which Standard and HOM completed was the extensive preservation of Fort Chaplin Park Apartments in Washington, DC. The project’s completion was celebrated with a ribbon-cutting event attended by Mayor Muriel Bowser and Councilmember Vincent Gray, who lauded the impact the project will have in the community for decades. This redevelopment project ensures that all 549 units at Fort Chaplin Park Apartments will remain affordable to low- and moderate-income households for the next 30 years, and was the largest tax-exempt bond, preservation deal in the District’s history. For this, Fort Chaplin Park Apartments was recognized as is a winner of The 2019 Charles L. Edson Tax Credit Excellence Award from The Affordable Housing Tax Credit Coalition at a ceremony on Capitol Hill.
Additionally, in Southern California, where both Standard Communities and Housing on Merit are headquartered, there is a shortage of nearly 1 million affordable homes. Housing on Merit is addressing this affordable housing crisis through their influence and ingenuity—specifically, a Housing Innovation + Learning Lab that explores non-traditional affordable housing options, tests innovative housing typologies, and accelerates the pace of production throughout the housing sector to influence future affordable housing developments.
