Woda Cooper Companies, a Columbus affordable housing developer, has taken an early step toward state funding for a planned 70-unit rental project in Mansfield. The Ohio Housing Finance Agency issued preliminary approval to the developer's application for Temple Greene in September and invited a final submission by Dec. 15, according to Richland Source. That step is routine in the agency's process.
The proposal calls for 70 three-bedroom units on scattered sites, a mix of single-family homes and possibly duplexes or triplexes, built on parcels owned by the Richland County Land Bank. In June, the land bank board approved a letter of intent to sell about 63 parcels, contingent on OHFA funding. Likely areas named in a purchase agreement include streets on the city's north and other sides, though final sites are not set.
Woda Cooper is seeking more than $31 million from OHFA. Public relations director Jill Fazekas said the company expects to receive the full request, described as a capital stack of loan, bond, grant and 4-percent tax credit funds. The total project cost is estimated at about $32 million, while the application sought a package worth about $38 million, partly because tax credits are often sold below face value. A 4-percent low-income housing tax credit with a projected value near $12.5 million is part of the plan.
Rents would be restricted to residents earning 50 to 70 percent of area median income under the proposal, with affordability requirements typically lasting at least 15 years. City approval and zoning compliance remain necessary. Founder and CEO Jeff Woda told Richland Source the company would manage the properties long term and said it would not act as an absentee landlord, with local maintenance staffing and contractors.