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inCOMMON Community Development
1340 park avenue, Omaha, NE 68105
inCOMMONcd.org
Facebook.com/inCOMMON Twitter.com/inCOMMON Instagram.com/inCOMMONcd Linkedin.com/company/inCOMMON-community-development
Andrew Whealy
Housing Project Manager
andrew@incommoncd.org
+1 (402) 290-5956
Yes
Ismail Ismail - inCOMMON Housing Acquisition and Community Engagement Coordinator Ismail is a licensed real estate agent fluent in four languages (Somali, Swahili, Arabic, and English). He has provided homeownership services to new Americans for the past two years. Ismail holds an Associates degree in Finance from Metropolitan Community College, and has a strong background in marketing and Fiserv. Andrew Whealy, JD - inCOMMON Housing Development Corporation Project Manager Andrew has worked in the field of community development as an expert legal advisor for the past 14 years. Prior to joining inCOMMON in May 2022, Andrew was a partner at a national law firm where he primarily represented banks, investors, community development entities and developers in structuring complex commercial loan and equity investments which utilized various federal and state incentive programs including new markets tax credits, historic tax credits, low-income housing tax credits and reinvestment credits. Andrew has a Bachelor's d
inCOMMON’s organizational chart is headed by our Board of Directors who provide oversight of the co-Executive Directors, Christian Gray and Rachel Bahl. The co-Executive Directors share oversight of the organization’s three functional categories: Administration, Programming, and Fund Development. The attached organizational chart is formatted as an “accountability chart,” where the direction of accountability flows from right to left.
inCOMMON is currently renovating 75-units of affordable housing through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (“LIHTC”) program. This $16MM project includes the Bristol Apartments (1029 Park Ave, Omaha) and Georgia Row Apartments (1040 South 40th St, Omaha). In addition to leveraging LIHTC, the income sources secured for this project included Historic Tax Credits, Tax Increment Financing, and over $1.5MM in philanthropic sources. Both buildings are scheduled for completion July 2023. inCOMMON’s track record also includes the successful development, ownership, and operation of two community resource centers (1340 Park Ave, Omaha, and 1330 North 40th St, Omaha). Both of these centers serve as neighborhood-based hubs where area residents gather to build relationships, receive workforce training, and organize efforts toward neighborhood change. Finally, inCOMMON is also in the development stage of the 1.1 acre parcel at the corner of Park & Poppleton into a 108 affordable housing and commercial mixed use facility (The Poppleton). The construction and completion of The Poppleton is anticipatd to be completed in 2025. We invite you to further explore our impact here: tiny.cc/inIMPACT
Walnut Hill Community Investment Trust
50000000.0
4200000.0
Capital project
inCOMMON is seeking funding to establish a community investment trust (“CIT”) that will own, operate and develop the Walnut Hill Reservoir which is within Qualified Census Tract #49, located in east central Omaha. Nationally, CITs have been shown to be a viable strategy for building generational wealth among residents by permitting neighborhood residents to own equity in commercial developments, while also providing a buffer against gentrifying forces and predatory real estate speculation as such CITs require neighborhood representation on their board of directors. Specifically, we are seeking an investment toward the establishment of this new CIT, funds sufficient to acquire the land from the City and to conduct the predevelopment and environmental work to prepare the land for development into a multi-phase affordable housing and commercial destination location for the Walnut Hill neighborhood.
January 2023 – December 2023 – Creation of the Walnut Hill Investment Trust & Development Legal Structure for Property to Ensure Neighborhood Involvement and Benefit December 2023- December 2024 – Site Control – MUD and City of Omaha Transfer to WH IT -predevelopment property review environmental and site review December 2024-December 2025 – Site Preparation/initial phase development January 2026 – December 2026 - Environmental site work and First Phase Construction January 2027-January 2030 – Completion of the entire
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Fundamental Change (i.e., a proposal that will continue to elevate North or South Omaha's presence and perception within the region, significantly improving the lives of area residents through physical development) Long-Lasting Economic Growth (i.e., a proposal that will foster gainful employment opportunities and financial investment in the area, leading to the creation of generational wealth and widespread economic vitality in North and South Omaha) Transformational (i.e., a proposal that will help energize, recharge, or spur significant and favorable advancements in North or South Omaha's function or appearance)
Sustainable Community (i.e., create or enhance housing, services, education, civic uses, recreation, etc.)
Demographically, Walnut Hill is “majority-minority” with a resident composition of 37% Black/African American, 12% Hispanic/Latino, and 7% Asian. It is an area subject to high poverty rates and has been partially designated as “extremely blighted” by the City of Omaha (2020). According to the US Census, 33% of adults and 41% of children in Walnut Hill live below the poverty threshold, and median household income is $25,163, just 43% of the county median (US Census, 2018). The historical legacy of red-lining in Omaha and current eviction practices create further disadvantages, as eviction rates for Walnut Hill are among the highest in the city (Greenberg & Fischer, 2020). As common throughout North Omaha, Walnut Hill is socioeconomically disadvantaged as a result of longstanding practices and policies rooted in structural racism and inequity. Nationally, this has resulted in North Omaha’s ranking as the third-highest Black poverty rate among the 100 largest U.S. metro areas (Cordes, Gonzales and Grace, 2007). These disparities are unlikely to shift without targeted intervention as poverty in the Douglas County metro area is on the rise, particularly among communities of color (National Equity Atlas, 2018). The Walnut Hill Reservoir and surrounding area represents four square blocks of underdeveloped land in the heart of north central Omaha of the poverty-stricken Walnut Hill neighborhood. Since the early 2010s, MUD no longer uses the reservoir and based upon correspondence with MUD persons, it currently is in a holding pattern as to if it will utilized as part of a water sharing agreement with the city of Lincoln. In 2018, there were initial discussions by MUD and Omaha city land bank, to have the reservoir land sold to the City and then resold for development (see. https://omahalandbank.org/learn/40th-hamilton-area-land-assemblies/). Developing the WH Reservoir meets the goal of the use of LB 1024 funds to bring fundamental and transformational change to an un-used property location. By putting the development of the reservoir into a Community Investment Trust owned and operated by neighborhood residents will ensure that the economic benefit of the property will be for the residents of the neighborhood and will be a test case for the public/private development of a part of the City not just for the benefit of a development company, but for individual neighborhood residents.
The direct community benefit of this project will be threefold. First, the project will create an investment trust whose ownership will be residents of the neighborhood, permitting individuals to own shares and enjoy the economic benefit of the property’s development, playing a significant role in providing previously excluded individuals/families the opportunity to build generational wealth. Second, the development of the reservoir into a mixed use location with both affordable housing, single family and commercial residences will bring needed upgrade and development to an under-invested area of North Omaha. Finally, as aforementioned, this project will produce both short-term (via construction) and long-term (via management of the CIT and the commercial space) job opportunities. The economic development of the reservoir will directly benefit the neighborhood both through direct ownership in the CIT (for those neighbors that buy shares), but also for the economic benefits that development will bring as well increased affordable housing stock to a neighborhood in need of safe and new housing.
This project aligns with several priorities identified within LB1024 for both North and South Omaha, including: 1. Responding to deepened existing disparities resulting from the disproportional effects of COVID-19 within low- and moderate-income and minority communities 2. Targeting resources within Qualified Census tracts geographically situated in North Omaha 3. Emphasis on targeting a portion of resources toward housing needs and wealth-building among minority populations effected by historical practices such as redlining Additionally, this proposal aligns with the following goals identified in the “Omaha Housing Affordability Action Plan” (2022): 4. Increase the types of housing to meet current & future needs (Goal 1) 5. Preserve existing affordable units (Goal 2) 6. Foster housing innovation to lower costs (Goal 4) 7. Address housing instability (Goal 5) Finally, this proposal aligns with the following goals outlined in the “Housing Affordability in the Omaha and Council Bluffs Area” assessment (2021): 8. Accelerate affordable housing production (Goal “B”) 9. Preserve existing affordable housing (Goal “C”) 10. Foster innovations to lower housing costs (Goal “D”) 11. Intervention against the negative impacts of gentrification (Goal “E”)
2 Full time positions for the CIT; eventually permanent jobs from the commercial development could be 50 plus.
2 Full time positions for the CIT; eventually permanent jobs from the commercial development could be 50 plus.
100 plus for the development and construction scope of the reservoir.
These would be reasonable wages and fair labor law standards for both construction and permanent based upon the type of business leasing the space.
It is a priority of this project to hire contractors located within the Walnut Hill and North Omaha area. Specifically, we will seek North Omaha-based contractors.
The direct community benefit of this project will be threefold. First, the project will create an investment trust whose ownership will be residents of the neighborhood, permitting individuals to own shares and enjoy the economic benefit of the property’s development, playing a significant role in providing previously excluded individuals/families the opportunity to build generational wealth. Second, the development of the reservoir into a mixed use location with both affordable housing, single family and commercial residences will bring needed upgrade and development to an under-invested area of North Omaha. Finally, as aforementioned, this project will produce both short-term (via construction) and long-term (via management of the CIT and the commercial space) job opportunities. The economic development of the reservoir will directly benefit the neighborhood both through direct ownership in the CIT (for those neighbors that buy shares), but also for the economic benefits that development will bring as well increased affordable housing stock to a neighborhood in need of safe and new housing.
In addition to the benefits listed above, this project will address the need for leveraging vacant properties, as identified in the Visioning Workshops. Revitalizing vacant properties results in increased tax basis for communities, stronger property values for neighboring homes, neighborhood beautification in the removal of unkempt lots, and oftentimes reduced crime activity. Additionally, it is best practice for CIT boards to be composed of community residents, “allowing for the possibility of direct, grassroots participation in decision-making and community control of local assets” (https://investcit.com/). Furthermore, investments in housing and re correlated with increases in regional economic growth, as well as an increase in overall community health and well-being. As noted in the Affordable Housing Study: - $8 million in local income and 122 jobs are generated from every 100 units of affordable housing. - Families in affordable housing are able to spend five times more on healthcare, 30% more on quality food, and two times more on retirement savings.
Community Investment Trusts (CIT) are a new community financing structure utilized by just a few communities across the country – most notable MercyCorp in Portland, Oregon. The Community Investment Trust (CIT) builds the possibility to strengthen communities and create empowered lives. The CIT offers a long-term path to collective, communal ownership of real-estate for investors starting from $10-$100 per month through a community created real estate investment trust. By establishing Nebraskas first CIT and one of the first in the nation, the Walnut Hill Reservoir Trust can be a test case to show that community development can be by and for the neighborhood, with economic benefit of development not only being produced for large investors (often outside of the state) but also can be for the neighborhood residents. Additionally, by building the capacity of this first Omaha CIT through ARPA funding, the groundwork will be set for additional CITs to emerge in our community through shared resources and learning, resulting in even greater individual and community development outcomes.
Once created, the CIT will offer shares to neighborhood residents. The number of neighbors who buy shares will be an important measurement. In addition, the Walnut Hill development will be measured by the number of affordable housing units created as well as the commercial spaces that are created and the number of permanent jobs and economic development created by them.
These will be tracked by inCOMMON staff as well as by commercial and development partners that we make to create the WH reservoir development.
Yes. These are all indicators of neighborhood stability, which supports inCOMMON’s broader mission of “uniting and strengthening neighborhoods.” We believe increased success in these metrics would spur on additional investment toward these mutually-reinforcing goals. Furthermore, the development of the WH Reservoir will be an instigator for other economic development in the area and will connect the development happening south of the project location in the Blackstone/UNMC area with the development happening north in the 75 North Area.
Yes
inCOMMON ongoingly partners with a wide-array of community-based organizations (in 2021 these organizations included The Big Garden, City Sprouts, Coalition for a Strong Nebraska, Nebraska Civic Engagement Table, Keep Omaha Beautiful, Heartland Workforce Solutions, Goodwill Omaha, Restoration Exchange, Together Omaha, and Omaha Municipal Land Bank). For this project, NeighborWorks Lincoln has partnered through the sharing of their duplex development model, and we are pursuing Family Housing Advisory Services for homebuyer education, as well as First National Bank for financial literacy classes. Additional, prospective partners for this project include SPARK, the Omaha Municipal Land Bank, and Omaha by Design.
No
The 16 acres (or a portion not including the Walnut Hill park) which include the 4 blocks bounded by Hamilton to the north, 40th street to the west, Nicholas Street to the south and 38th street to the east.
Within one or more QCTs
No
No
Yes
Yes
No
No
Estimates for site preparation and clean-up were provided based upon estimates provided 3 years ago as part of some initial inquiry when MUD initially indicated interest on selling the property.
No
The fund requested are the amount estimated to be needed to acquire and establish the land for development, as well as the legal costs to set up the CIT structure.
The grant funds will be used to set up the legal structure of the CIT as well as the initial costs to acquire and clean-up the property.
No
The LB 1024 funds will permit the viability of the CIT to be the lead developer of the Walnut Hill Reservoir site and direct the development of the site for the betterment of the neighbordhood.
Additional financing and funding will be pursued through tax incentive programs (LIHTC, NMTC, HTC and TIFF/PACE) to complete the full development area.
We have not pursued any other funding at this juncture.
Yes, these LB 1024 funds are the needed funding to get the project off the ground.
Yes. The formation of the CIT can be utilized for other project locations as well and a smaller scope at the same location.
inCOMMON has provided funding commitment for the trust, devoting 2 full time employees to this trust (if approved) as well as fundraising efforts to support the development project.
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Additional Location Documents (see application for list) Data table of uses (breakdown of how the requested funds will be used for your proposal) Organizational Chart Proposal Budget/Sources and Uses