With groundbreaking on an affordable housing development in Glendale approaching, the city next month will submit a request with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for grant money to support the project.
On or about Jan. 16, the city of Glendale will ask for the release of Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to undertake the Centerline on Glendale project. The development features a 368-unit multi-family residential facility on 13 acres at the southeast corner of 67th and Glendale avenues.
The project has multiple HUD money sources, according to the city, including Home Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) funding from the Arizona Department of Housing (ADOH), project-based vouchers from the city of Glendale, and CDBG funding from the city.
The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors in April of this year approved $6 million toward the affordable housing project. ADOH in May awarded the Centerline project $2 million in the first-ever issuance of Arizona State Housing Tax Credits.
CDBG funding for the project will not exceed $1 million, and the total project budget is approximately $118 million.
“We are looking to break ground in early March with about a 20-month build time for the entire project,” Dan Klocke, development project manager with the developer, Gorman & Company, shared in a Dec. 28 email to the Independent.
The project figures to serve two city initiatives: to develop affordable housing, and to further encourage development and redevelopment of the Overlay District within Glendale Centerline.
Centerline on Glendale looks to add much needed housing inventory while addressing the growing gap of affordability and a need for quality units in town.
“(Affordable housing) is particularly acute in Glendale, which has a markedly higher poverty rate than the county as a whole: Glendale has an 18% poverty rate, whereas Maricopa County overall is 12.2%,” Gorman wrote to the city in its proposed minor General Plan amendment and rezoning narrative from this past February, with regards to the new project. “Working with city of Glendale staff, Gorman has identified an opportunity to develop a significant affordable housing project on the site.”
Gorman has developed two other affordable dwellings in Glendale: the Glendale Enterprise Lofts, at Glendale and 63rd avenues; and Ironwood Village, a formerly troubled apartment complex near 43rd Avenue and Ocotillo Road.
The Centerline Overlay District, meanwhile, has long been a focus for the city.
The district comprises the area bounded by Myrtle Avenue to the north, 43rd Avenue to the east, Ocotillo Road to the south, and 67th Avenue to the west. The seven-square mile area includes four targeted areas: Midtown District (43rd to 51st avenues), Beet Sugar District (51st to 55th avenues), Historic Downtown (55th to 59th avenues), and Market District (59th to 67th avenues).
In 2011 a city report identified the area as long-range redevelopment potential, and in that effort provided an alternate set of development requirements to encourage development and redevelopment within the Centerline.
“The intent,” the city report stated at the time, “is to facilitate private business investment, job creation, and the development of shopping and recreational opportunities in the Glendale Centerline.”
Gorman will invest $90 million on the site, one of the most significant investments since the creation of the Overlay District.
CCBG is the project architect.
Centerline on Glendale is located within the Glendale Unified School District, including Glendale Elementary School District and Glendale Union High School District.
Any individual, group, or agency may submit written comments on the project to the city at revitalization@glendaleaz.com, or at 5850 W. Glendale Ave., Suite 107, Glendale, AZ 85301. The city will consider all comments received by 5 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 14 prior to authorizing submission of a Request for Release of Funds from HUD.
Steve Stockmar News Editor | Sun Life Magazine & Arts & Entertainment
YourValley.net @stevestockmar
Meet Steve Steve Stockmar joined Independent Newsmedia, Inc., USA, in 2017, and has been an Arizona journalist for almost 30 years. He serves as editor of Sun Life Magazine and contributes to West Valley communities where he focuses mostly on arts & culture, education, and profiles of neighbors making a difference.
Community: Every season Steve serves as a “buddy” with the Miracle League of Arizona in Scottsdale, has volunteered his time with Family Promise in Glendale, and previously served on the Ghostlight Theatre board in Sun City West.
Education: Graduated from Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff with a Journalism major and English minor.
Random Fact: Steve once won a 50-player live Texas Hold ’Em poker tournament.
Hobbies: Anguishing over his beloved Chicago Cubs and Bears; listening to Beatles and Grateful Dead music.
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