Press Release
Standard Communities, the affordable housing division of Standard Companies, has led a public-private partnership that acquired Bridgeview Village Apartments, the largest privately-owned affordable community in the city of Charleston, SC. Built in 1971, and acquired via a long-term ground lease, Bridgeview Village is a 100% affordable community comprising 300 units in 26 residential buildings on a 22-acre site. All units are covered by a Project-Based Section 8 Housing Assisted Payment (HAP) contract.
Standard Communities completed this transaction in partnership with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), South Carolina State Housing Finance and Development Authority (SC Housing), and Housing On Merit. With a total capitalization of over $97 million, including a $22 million renovation, the transaction was financed with Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTC) arranged in partnership with SC Housing and purchased by Alliant Capital, with additional financing provided by Citibank.
This significant public-private partnership preserves and extends the affordability of all 300 units for the long-term. A comprehensive tenant-in-place renovation will invest more than $70,000 per unit to address deferred maintenance and the construction of a new state of the art amenity center for residents to enjoy. This renovation will also upgrade unit interiors, including flooring, countertops, and cabinetry, as well as enhance safety and security features with added site lighting, access control systems, surveillance cameras and monitoring. The project will also benefit from several green energy initiatives, including LED light fixtures, low flow plumbing fixtures in units, as well as photovoltaic and rain catchment systems on the new amenity center.
“We are proud to partner with HUD, SC Housing, and Housing on Merit to preserve and expand affordable housing in South Carolina,” said Scott Alter, Co-founder and Principal of Standard Communities. “Our use of innovative financial structuring and our strong public-private partnerships have proven invaluable when trying to address the challenges associated with providing affordable housing in high-cost and high-opportunity locations such as Charleston,” said Mr. Alter.
Standard Communities' acquisition and rehabilitation of Bridgeview Village Apartments follows the announcement in October 2020 of Standard's acquisition and renovation of Canebreak Apartments, a 120-unit affordable apartment community in Summerville, SC.
“Standard has built a track record of preserving affordable housing in South Carolina and, more broadly, we have created and/or preserved over 3,000 units of affordable housing on the East Coast,” said Tommy Attridge, Standard's Director of Southeast Production. “We look forward to continued work in South Carolina to address its affordable housing crisis by creating vibrant, affordable housing communities that strengthen the economic and social fabric of neighborhoods,” said Mr. Attridge.
“Housing on Merit's commitment to preserving affordable housing has not wavered during the pandemic, which has reinforced how important it is to continue to provide residents with safe and affordable places to live. To that end, we're grateful for our partnership with Standard Communities and South Carolina Housing in preserving and extending the affordability of Bridgeview Village Apartments,” said Jennifer Litwak, Executive Director for Housing on Merit.
Based in Los Angeles and New York, Standard Companies has a portfolio of approximately 13,700 apartment units, including 9,900 affordable units, and has completed more than
$2.6 billion of affordable housing acquisitions and rehabilitations nationwide. The affordable housing division of Standard Companies is Standard Communities, which strives to cultivate long-term public and private partnerships to produce and preserve high-quality, affordable and environmentally sustainable housing.
Housing on Merit (HOM) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, with a mission to create a bridge to permanent affordable housing for vulnerable populations. HOM is a co-developer of numerous bond-financed and government-supported affordable multifamily housing projects, many of which benefit from allocations of federal Low-Income Housing Tax Credits.
