The City of Bellingham and the nonprofit Opportunity Council are partnering to build a new affordable housing and child care center project near Bellis Fair mall. The $60 million development will include between 120-130 affordable rental units and a child care center with space for around 100 kids.
Demand for low-income and affordable housing continues to rise in the region, where homelessness and housing insecurity has skyrocketed while available inventory remains low. At the same time, Whatcom County is considered a child care desert, where demand far outpaces the supply of slots.
With the city, the Opportunity Council closed on a 2.7-acre property on the corner of Eliza Avenue and Bellis Fair Parkway on Thursday, June 20. Construction is expected to begin in October of this year. It will be similar to the Millworks project on the waterfront, which also has child care in addition to affordable units.
The rental units will be available mostly to households whose incomes range from $25,000 to $60,000 per year. The first phase focuses on families, but the second phase, which is expected to start in late 2025, will serve senior citizens. The Opportunity Council will build and manage the project.
The $60 million cost will be funded from a variety of streams. The Opportunity Council is investing approximately $34 million dollars in the first phase. The city is investing $8.7 million to support the purchase and development of the property. City funding will come from ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act), the federal HOME Investment Partnership Program, the state Commerce Connecting Housing to Infrastructure program, and local affordable housing levy and sales tax dollars.
Project funders also include Whatcom County, state agencies, a congressional allocation supported by U.S. Sen. Patty Murray and individual community donors.
“The City of Bellingham has been an amazing partner on this important project,” said Greg Winter, executive director of Opportunity Council, in a news release on Tuesday, June 25. “And we want to extend our gratitude to the many other partners helping us bring this project together.”
Julia Tellman writes about civic issues and anything else that happens to cross her desk; contact her at juliatellman@cascadiadaily.com.
