Affordable housing project breaks ground in Libby

After years in the making, ground was broken last week at a property on Commerce Way in Libby for an affordable housing complex.

Many of the principals involved in the project posed for photos and shared their enthusiasm that work has begun.

In October 2022, Cabinet Affordable Housing was awarded federal tax credits for a low-income housing project at a Montana Board of Housing meeting.

A $6.5 million tax credit project was awarded to Community Action Partnership of Northwest Montana in October for housing in Libby. It was part of nearly $32 million in tax credits that also benefit housing projects in Butte, Great Falls, Crow Agency and Missoula.

While officials hoped to break ground much sooner, high costs of materials had them putting on the breaks until they decreased. Construction on the project was slated to being in spring 2023, with an anticipated build-time for just under one year.

“It hasn’t been easy waiting, but we really didn’t have any other choice,” CAPNM's Cassidy Kipp said at the Oct. 16 event. “We’re very excited work is beginning and hopefully we can get some ground work done this fall.”

Kipp first pitched the ideal to Libby City Council in the summer of 2021.

Cabinet Affordable Housing will build a 24-unit housing project targeting households with limited income on a 4.1 acre lot on Commerce Way, across from the Flathead Valley Community College. Tenants will be eligible for rent subsidy through CAPNM. 

There will be 24 units in 13 duplex buildings with monthly rent ranging from $634 to $920. When finished, the development would boast 10 two-bedroom (825 square feet) and 14 one-bedroom units (675 square feet).

“This project is designed to be a significant addition to housing in Libby and Lincoln County,” said Gerald Fritts of American Covenant Senior Housing Foundation, which is cooperating with Community Action Plan on the project.

Kipp was also pleased with the design of the project.

“It’s not a massive footprint and it will have a neighborhood feel to it, which is what we wanted,” she said.

The project is intended to create multifamily units, with income targeting for households below 50% and 60% of the area median income.

According to the state Department of Commerce, federal housing tax credits allow developers to borrow less construction money and pass the savings along through lower rent.

In addition, Montana Board of Housing Chair Sheila Rice said, “Enacting a state affordable housing tax credit, as recommended in the Governor’s Housing Task Force report, would present an incredible opportunity for the state to support the development of more affordable, attainable housing in the future.”

It is the first time tax credits have been awarded for family projects in the Libby area and the only prior tax credit allocation in Libby was awarded to an elderly project in 1999.

Kristin Smith, a member of the Libby City Council and one who advocated for the project, was pleased to hear of the news.

“I think it’s a win for Libby and our hard-working citizens,” Smith said. “It should provide opportunities and upward mobility in housing.

“As an employer who has employed, historically, a number of single women with children, I know there is a need,” Smith said. “I’m very grateful for the partnership. I can’t wait to see it built.”

Proponents say the new project will satisfy a growing community need while offering rents that are well below market rate in the area (20% below the 2-bedroom market rate and 25% below the one-bedroom market rate).

Kipp said people have called to get on a wait list, but she said that can't begin until the units are six months from completion.

The project is being developed by American Covenant Senior Housing Foundation and Community Action Partnership of Northwest Montana.

In addition, Community Action Partnership of Northwest Montana will have on-site offices to serve the public, as well the leasing agent.

Kipp said the development would feature an office and community room where her group can connect both tenants and area residents with its services, including homebuyer education and financial skill building courses.

“We’re building good taxpayers. We’re getting skills, skills for long-term success and also assisting for things such as the burden for heating expenses during the winter months,” she said. “It’s really going to be a place where we serve the community in a real accessible manner.”

Three out of the four affordable housing developments in the area are geared toward the elderly. There is a need for housing for younger families, like single parents and children, she said.

“What we see is there is absolutely a shortage of safe and affordable homes,” Kipp said. “We see renters terribly cost burdened with what they’re paying.”

About 30 percent of residents in the Libby area spend 50 percent or more of their income on housing and utility costs, she said.

Kipp said U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development rules dictate that every bedroom hold two people.

“It’s not uncommon to see households in single rooms and spaces that are pretty small,” she said. “What we envision here is a single mom and a child, a single parent and a child.”

Fritts said previously that proposed development did not prohibit senior tenants.

“We only have two types of products we can put forward to the Montana Board of Housing: It’s either going to be a senior facility or a family facility,” he said.

“Even though the need is for one and two bedroom units … it doesn’t preclude [seniors] either. It’s a much broader definition for the community.”

Fritts is very pleased with the unique features of the development.

“There will be an electric car charging station, all new energy start appliances, forced air heating, vinyl plank flooring and quartz counter tops,” Fritts said. “Also, all units will be powered by solar power and tied in with Flathead Electric Coop.

“Also, tenants will be eligible for washers and dryers through a rebate program from the Flathead Electric Coop. The community building will have computers and printers available for tenants.”

Kipp said a third party, Idaho-based Infinity Management, would manage the application process, the same company already in charge of Treasure Manor.

Glacier Bank is the lender for the job.