Spring Creek Village

Gypsum, Colorado – Congressional District 3

Contact
Colorado Department of Local Affairs 
Julia Zaffarano
[email protected]

Spring Creek Village is located in Gypsum, Colorado in the western portion of Eagle County. The development supports 150-units of one-, two-, and three-bedroom units serving household with incomes 30-60% AMI. Eagle County is home to Vail and Beaver Creek resorts, and is commonly known as the Vail Valley. The majority of homes in Gypsum and the nearby town of Eagle are full-time residences, as opposed to the substantial part-time, highly priced, second-home markets in Edwards, Avon, Beaver Creek and Vail. The Eagle-Gypsum community is home to over 18,000 residents, roughly one third of the total population of Eagle County, and is by far the fastest-growing area in the county.

The primary obstacle for multifamily rental housing development in Eagle County is the lack of suitable, affordable development sites. Due to the location within the mountains, it is difficult to find large enough sites with appropriate site and demographic characteristics. Due to the lack of land and high construction costs, there has been minimal apartment construction over the past twelve years. Vail Resorts has most recently completed units in Vail, however, those units are held exclusively for Vail Resort employees.

The site for Spring Creek Village consisted of the remaining undeveloped 34 acres of an existing project, Stratton Flats, in Gypsum. Stratton Flats now neighbors Spring Creek Village and consists of 44 duplex and fourplex units, most of which were developed by Habitat for Humanity of Vail Valley.

Spring Creek Apartments, LLC applied to the Colorado Division of Housing for funding of Spring Creek Village in early 2018. Spring Creek was awarded total funding of $1.2 million in the form of two cash flow loans, from the HTF and HDG funding sources. By May 2019, construction costs had increased nearly $3.5 million for the project and other expenses had increased by as much as 60%. Spring Creek had to reconsider its financials and make significant changes to the design after application. The site design was altered to fit the project into 5 modular construction buildings, making Spring Creek one of the few multifamily modular projects funded by the Colorado Division of Housing. While 60% of the site and building costs were performed locally, the modular construction of units and interior finishes dramatically reduced the cost and made the project feasible.

The Town of Gypsum supported 122 additional units of density and a reduction of impact fees. Eagle County also awarded $500,000 to the project. There was broad support from the Vail Valley Partnership Housing Coalition, which focuses on workforce housing in the area. Local employers also greatly supported the project. During construction, 200 local workers were employed.

Spring Creek started leasing up in June 2020 and was fully leased by November. Spring Creek has become home to households with severe disabilities, victims of domestic violence (referred by a local domestic violence shelter), single parent households, youth, and seniors. Hispanic and Latino American residents account for over 80% of households.

While Spring Creek provides a home to many local residents, the imbalance of supply and demand for affordable housing in Eagle County remains. Spring Creek Village provides less than 10% of the rental housing needs recently identified in an Eagle County Needs Assessment engaged by the local housing authority. A second phase of Spring Creek Village is planned for the future.

Funding
STATE OF COLORADO HOUSING DEVELOPMENT GRANT (HDG): $470,000
STATE OF COLORADO HTF: $730,000
EAGLE COUNTY HOUSING AND DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY LOAN: $500,000
LIHTC EQUITY: $12,627,606
FANNIE MTEB BONDS: $20,600,000
FANNIE COI REIMBURSEMENT: $154,500
LAND CARRYBACK SUBORDINATE LOAN: $2,960,000
PROJECT CASH FLOW COVERING CURRENT DEVELOPMENT FEE: $271,923
DEFERRED DEVELOPER FEE: $2,403,376
TOTAL SOURCES: $40,717,504