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City of Ashland Andy Atkinson / Daily Tidings Property on Ashland Street behind Rogue Federal Credit Union's new building could be developed into 25 affordable housing units. Thursday Apr 19, 2018 at 8:17 PM Apr 19, 2018 at 8:17 PM By Tran NguyenAshland Daily Tidings The Ashland City Council awarded a Medford-based nonprofit $400,000 in grants Tuesday night to help in their effort to build a 25-unit affordable housing complex behind the newly opened Rogue Credit Union branch at 1661 Ashland St. ColumbiaCare is a nonprofit and a primary provider of mental health services for Jackson Care Connect. It received $100,000 from the city’s Community Development Block Grant and $300,000 from the Affordable Housing Trust Fund to cover some costs in land acquisition, construction and permit application, according to a city staff report. “I’m very impressed with the services that ColumbiaCare provides,” Councilor Jackie Bachman said. “I feel very positive about moving forward with these grants.” The project, anticipated to finish construction in October 2019, has received support from a number of nonprofits and government agencies, including AllCare Health, Jackson County Health and Human Services and Jackson Care Connect. According to its application to the city, Oregon Housing and Community Services has also granted the development $1.25 million to cover construction costs. The project will use a bank loan to cover the remaining cost of the project’s total of $3.8 million, according to ColumbiaCare. It proposes to build a 25- to 32-unit affordable housing complex, which would also feature as many as 13 units for low-income individuals suffering from mental illness. The total number of units are up to the city’s decision through a permit application process. The complex, called Rogue Ridge Apartments, would be staffed with professional employees to provide special care to those tenants. The remaining units would be available to those who earn no more than 60 percent of the median family income level, according to its application. The complex would be at the 1.09-acre vacant lot at 1651 Ashland St., behind the new branch of Rogue Credit Union, which will have a grand opening May 10. The lot is within the area the city has identified as “Transit Triangle” — an area where the city is seeking zoninge to encourage more affordable units. Last year, the Ashland Planning Commission initially denied the credit union’s request for an exception to divide its lot for a potential affordable housing development. The credit union appealed the decision to the City Council, pleading that the exception would bring benefits to the community. The council unanimously overturned the decision in March. A credit union spokeswoman said the two organizations are still in negotiation and declined to disclose more information. “We are in very early stages of the process,” credit union spokeswoman Kelsey Esquela said. “We can say that we have every intention to partner with a nonprofit.” According to its proposed timeline, ColumbiaCare is anticipating finishing the land acquisition — for $650,000 — with Rogue Credit Union by July and breaking ground in early 2019. It’s still required to go through a building permit process, which would include a zone change request, according to staff report. ColumbiaCare didn’t respond to the Tidings’ inquiry in time for this story. ColumbiaCare is among six nonprofits who received grant funding Tuesday night — Rogue Valley Habitat for Humanity got $50,000 for land acquisition, Ashland Housing Opportunities received $49,653 to renovate its housing complex, Options for Homeless Residents of Ashland was granted $19,000 for a community needs assessment and other planning fees, Maslow Project received $7,143 for operation costs, and St. Vincent De Paul got $16,655 to fund emergency rent and deposit assistance. Clay Street property sale The council on Tuesday also approved the long-planned sale of a property on Clay Street to the Housing Authority of Jackson County. According to staff report, the sale — for $268,238 — will not include the land where the cottonwood tree that was named “Tree of the year” in 2013 is located. HAJC has said it will use the land to develop workforce housing. According to city staff, the organization is still in negotiation with the parks department to also acquire the adjacent 2.5-acre parcel. “(HAJC) is looking for land to be able to build 50 affordable housing units in Ashland,” Acting City Administrator Adam Hanks said. “If they can’t acquire the adjacent land, they can still look for a different site and meet their requirement through a ‘scatter site.’” Revenue from the sale is expected to be at $250,000 and transferred to Affordable Housing Trust Fund. Councilor vacancy Councilor Rich Rosenthal proposed extending the deadline to apply for Councilor Traci Darrow’s seat until April 24. “I’m very surprised to only have four applicants for this seat,” Rosenthal said. “I think a few more days won’t hurt us.” Rosenthal — supported by Councilor Stefani Seffinger — said he felt the position wasn’t “advertised well enough.” He also added his proposal wasn’t based on the qualifications of the four applicants. “I heard there were some confusion,” Seffinger said. “People thought they couldn’t apply if they didn’t apply for the previous vacancy.” The proposal passed 3-2. Councilors Bachman and Dennis Slattery voted “no” on the proposal, saying citizens who want to be on the council should be more aware of the council’s business. The council is to pick Darrow’s replacement on May 1 as scheduled, eliminating the one-on-one interview process. —Reach reporter Tran Nguyen at 541-776-4485 or [email protected]. Follow her on twitter @nguyenntrann.