Our
Story
Winter Street Housing Associates, LLC is a single purpose entity created solely to develop an affordable housing project located at the corner lot of Winter and Beech Street in Lisbon.
Although still in the infant stages of planning, the proposed development will house a minimum of 42 low-income families. These 42 families currently reside at the Farwell Mill.
Recognizing the dire need for repair to the Mill, an application for rehabilitation was submitted to Maine State Housing Authority in 2021. This proposal used funding sources comprised of Low Income Housing Tax Credits, Federal Historical Tax Credits, State Historical Tax Credits, and a Community Development Block Grant.
The Mill is listed on the National Historic Registry. This requires all renovations to the historical Mill to be completed at a standard required to maintain historical integrity and appearance. Working with an historical consultant, an architect, a construction company, and several specialized engineers over the course of a year, the cost to renovate the Mill to a standard that would satisfy the National Park Service as well as Maine State Housing Authority was estimated to be $43,000,000.
Even with generating equity from the sale of the tax credits and being awarded $1,000,000 CDBG, the funding gap was too large to be feasible with the income restrictions of an affordable housing complex.
Maine State Housing Authority is moving the existing 42 affordable units to a new apartment complex. As a courtesy to us, we have been given the opportunity to create a development for these families to keep them in their home community of Lisbon.
Due to the large number of families on the waitlist of the Mill, we see a need to expand the development to create additional apartments for families looking to be a part of the Lisbon community.
For better understanding of the need for this housing in your community, our current waitlist has 78 households waiting for one-bedroom, 25 households waiting for two-bedroom, and 10 households waiting for three-bedroom.
Proposed Development
The development is considering between 60 to 70 apartments of low-income housing. Forty-two of these apartments already exist in the town of Lisbon. They will be offered a new apartment once the development is complete, although they are not required to move. Should they decide to remain at the Mill, the Mill will no longer have affordability restrictions and they will be required to pay the Mill's rents, not the existing affordable rents.
We are proposing an additional 18 to 28 affordable apartment units, which would be new units to the town of Lisbon. As shown in the sketch above, the project layout currently consists of four apartment buildings set back into the development and one community building at the corner of Winter and Beech Street.
The apartment buildings would have community laundry in each of the buildings. The community building would provide a mailroom, a management staff office, a Resident Service Coordinator office, and an office for the use of the Town of Lisbon personnel. The community building would also provide a space for small gatherings for tenant use, such as hosting birthday parties. There is currently a covered porch for students awaiting the bus.
The proposed design allows for a smooth flow of traffic with minimal congestion and a safe walking path for families to walk to the community building. There is proposed green space for the children to play in the center of rear drive and parking area.
A buffer of vegetation will be preserved and/or replanted during construction around the perimeter of the development to minimize the impact on the neighboring residences, including providing a sound buffer, a light buffer, and a visual buffer.
Consideration from Lisbon
Winter Street Housing Associates, LLC is requesting a consideration of land donation or easement from the town owned parcel abutting the development located on Beech Street, Map U20-023. This proposed development is not seeking any consideration regarding abutting Beaver Park.
As shown in the sketch above depicted in red stripes, the first consideration runs along Beech Street. The purpose of this request is to allow for a secondary emergency entrance for emergency personnel. The development will be responsible for snow removal of this secondary entrance, as well as the roads and walks within the development.
The secondary emergency entrance is a requirement of the town in order to comply with Codes and Regulations.
The second consideration, also depicted above in red stripes, would be to allow for the density requirements to allow for up to 70 units. There is no intention to remove vegetation from this area unless the town requests additional green space for the children.
The property is zoned Limited Residential. With the adoption of LD 2003 (found here), the 8.6 acre parcel would be eligible to develop 64 units. The additional portion of land currently owned by the town of Lisbon would allow for 74+ units. We would not be looking to create more than 70 units on this parcel.
In exchange for this consideration, Winter Street Housing Associates, LLC will create an office within the community building designated for town personnel. This is still in negotiation stages and would be subject to Town Council approval.
Financing
The funding for this development comes from the generation of Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC). The LIHTC program allows for developers to receive tax credits on eligible basis items only, and sell these tax credits to a Partner in exchange for real money, equity. These tax credits are only eligible for low-income housing developments, with an IRS requirement of residents' income being limited to 60% area median income (AMI) or less.
These tax credits also come with a 45-year affordability covenant, meaning every unit developed will be rent restricted for a minimum of 45 years. Tenants must qualify and be able to pay their rents which are capped at the LIHTC rents for the area. The current rent limits for Lisbon are:
One-bedroom: $463 (30% AMI), $773 (50% AMI), $927 (60% AMI)
Two-bedroom: $556 (30% AMI), $927 (50% AMI), $1,113 (60% AMI)
Three-bedroom: $642 (30% AMI), $1,071 (50% AMI), $1,285 (60% AMI)
For example, at 60% AMI, a family of three would need to make no more than $44,520 per year (using 2024 guidelines - 2025 guidelines are not available until after April). Assuming this household has only one working adult, that adult cannot make more than $21.40 per hour working a full-time job. This is your local cashier, your child's school bus driver, your daycare provider or substitute teacher, your waitress/waiter, many people in your community that you interact with regularly.
Of the existing 42-units that we are required to relocate, 12 of them have deep rent restrictions which date back to the original Extended Use Agreement when the Mill was renovated into residential apartments. Those rent restrictions require 3 units of 30% AMI, and 9 units of 40% AMI. These rent restrictions will move over to the new development with the Extended Use Agreement.
Maine State Housing Authority will provide the remainder of the financing.
Future of the Mill
Certainly, you are all wondering of the future of the Farwell Mill.
As you are now aware, the Mill is listed on the National Historic Registry, and the expense to rehabilitate the Mill far exceeds the revenue available through rent restricted income accompanied by funding from Maine State Housing Authority.
Without Maine State Housing Authority covenants and with rent restrictions removed, we would have access to more funding sources necessary to rehabilitate the Mill to historical standards. Renovating a historically significant building is very elaborate and intricate. The National Park Service has to approve every product and material, down to the color of the paint.
The high operating costs of the Mill, including electric bills, plowing, heating costs, elevator maintenance, real estate taxes - all costs that cannot be controlled by property owners - have made it difficult to afford large capital improvements on a restricted income. In recent years, there have been repairs to a portion of the brick facade, minor repairs to the roof, as well as repairs to individual units.
In 2022, the quote to replace the roof came in at $876,000. Historical window replacements cost $1,965,050. The repairs to the gas house were estimated to be greater than $550,000. Without access to a large amount of capital, we simply cannot afford these repairs on rental income alone.
By renovating the Mill without rental income restrictions, we would be able to finance with private sources. The upgrades would still be subject to National Park Service approvals.
Once the Winter Street development is complete, the 42-units would be given the opportunity to permanently relocate from the Mill. We can then begin the occupied historical rehab. No resident will be forced to move from the Mill. Management will provide detailed communication regarding what will take place with an occupied rehab.
Options are still being explored for the Mill, but one thing is certain: the Mill needs a lot of work and we do not want to see a vacant, run down historical gem go to waste.