Scott Ptach, Nederland. A planned Nederland complex that will offer permanently affordable housing for 26 families now has a name: Tungsten Village.
The ‘Name it, Ned!’ contest garnered 70 respondents who chose from six different options. This submission received more than twice as many top votes that the second runner-up. The two people who won the contest submitted ideas with the word ‘tungsten’ in the name and cited Nederland’s history of tungsten mining as the source of their inspiration.
According to town history, Sam Conger found tungsten, a rare metal also known as wolfram, in areas north and east of Nederland. An old silver mill in Nederland was converted to process tungsten. By 1916, Nederland had a population of nearly 3,000, about twice its present number. The discovery of tungsten inspired a renaissance of mining in Nederland, becoming synonymous with new beginnings and revitalization of the mountain town.
The town’s website indicates that after the initial rush for Tungsten, a second one happened during World War II as the demand for the metal increased.
The Boulder County Housing Authority purchased a .85-acre lot across from the Nederland Park-n-Ride, and the homes will be rented at a permanently below market rate. The plan calls for a mix of one- two- and three-bedroom homes, and the housing authority is working with the Boulder Valley School District to set aside four homes for qualified district employees.
The agency presented a final planned unit development application to the town, and Nederland’s Planning Commission approved the application in a 4-1 vote on February 28, 2018. The Nederland Board of Trustees approved the project on March 20, 2018. BCHA has applied to the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority (CHFA) for funding support for the construction of this new neighborhood of affordable workforce housing. The application seeks to utilize Low Income Housing Tax Credits, an important tool in the creation of affordable housing.
Construction could begin on Tungsten Village as soon as next summer and will provide homes geared toward working families, single parents, the elderly, teachers and school staff, firefighters, service industry workers and others who struggle with the high cost of housing. Some of the traits of Tungsten Village will include:
26 high-quality, permanently-below-market-rate rental homes.
Homes would be affordable to those earning at or below 60% of Area Median Income (AMI).
Mix of 1, 2, and 3-bedroom homes.
BCHA is committed to working with the Boulder Valley School District (BVSD) to serve district employees who are being priced out of the market.
BCHA is planning to set aside up to four (4) homes for qualified district employees.
Community Amenities include: Secured keyless entry feature, individual home storage, paved patio area with outdoor seating, play-ground/tot lot & ponds, on-site secure bicycle parking, pedestrian connection to regional transportation network and on-site property management office.
BCHA currently owns and manages 24 existing residential multifamily homes within the town limits and will be making investments to improve these communities in years to come to help ensure below-market-rate housing options remain in place for residents in these homes. In addition to the 24 apartments currently owned and managed by BCHA in Nederland, BCHA also has 11 Housing Choice Voucher holders who reside in Nederland.
Housing Choice Vouchers are housing assistance vouchers used in the private housing market.
BCHA is very supportive of pursuing a preference for current Nederland residents and workforce members to live in these homes. Before it could be put in place, this preference would need to be approved by federal and state regulators, and here’s why: While BCHA wants to build below-market-rate rental housing in Nederland because it’s clear the area needs it, federal and state fair housing laws make it illegal to discriminate against any person in the terms, conditions or privileges of sale or rental of a dwelling because of race, color, religion, sex, familial status, national origin or handicap. One of the law’s purposes is to promote residential integration. Requiring the homes be rented only to “Nederland people” could be construed as discriminatory because an unanticipated consequence could be that the housing is then unavailable to some of the seven protected class categories.
With very limited exceptions not applicable here, the Fair Housing Act applies to anyone seeking to build, sell, rent or finance housing, affordable or not.
Scott Ptach is a Realtor with RE/MAX of Boulder and The Boulder Property Network. He can be reached at scottptach@boulderco.com or 970-819-3745.
